Allianz to exit Interise InvIT, to sell Rs 1,900-crore stake to Canadian OMERS

Interise InvIT comprises 17 road projects with 7,300 lane kilometres, spread across 8 states in India.

Allianz Capital Partners, a unit of global insurance major Allianz, is selling its entire 13.48 percent stake in Interise Trust, an infrastructure investment trust (InvIT), to Canadian pension fund Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS), the company said in an exchange filing.

Allianz will sell its entire holding of approximately 14 crore units to two entities controlled by OMERS, the September 10 filing said. The Canadian pension fund, which already holds a 21.28 percent stake in the InvIT, will see its holding rise to 34.8 percent.

“Allianz was running a process with investment bank Ambit to find a buyer for its stake in the InvIT and OMERS wanted to increase its stake in the InvIT and thus Allianz decided to sell their stake to the Canadian pension fund,” said a source.

Interise Trust takes on highway projects and was initially sponsored by domestic construction giant Larsen & Toubro.

Allianz first invested in the InvIT in 2018 by picking up a 25 percent stake. Another Canadian pension fund, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), is the biggest shareholder in Interise with a little over 60 percent stake.

At the closing price of Rs 135.1 on September 10, the Allianz stake is worth approximately Rs 1,900 crore.

Allianz also proposes to sell to OMERS its entire 25 percent stake in Interise Investment Managers Limited, the investment manager of the trust. OMERS entities hold a 25 percent stake in Interise Investment Managers.

Interise InvIT comprises 17 road projects with 7,300 lane kilometres, spread across eight states in India.