Cerberus set for exit as Japan’s Seibu agrees to Tokyo listing

The two parties have agreed to a public offering in Tokyo early in the new financial year, which starts in April, Reuters reported. This would allow Cerberus to exit more than half of its 35.48% holding in railway and property group Seibu.

The private equity firm initially paid $802 million for a 29.9% stake in the company in 2006, participating in a $1.2 billion bailout alongside Nikko Principal Investments. Seibu was delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2004 amid a scandal over misstating stakes held by shareholders in contravention of exchange rules.

Lingering tensions over an IPO came to a head last year when Cerberus sought to assert more control over company management. The PE firm made an unsolicited public tender, seeking to increase its holding from 32.4% to as much as 44.7%, but had to settle for 35.48%.

It subsequently criticized the handling of the business in a 22-page open letter, citing a failure to hit earnings targets as well as poor governance and disclosure practices, and proposed eight new directors to give it half the seats on an expanded Seibu board. The proposal was voted down by shareholders.

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• Topics
• Exits
• North Asia
• Real estate
• Japan
• Cerberus Capital Management
• Exit
• IPO
• Real estate