Purple announces opening of its public offer

Purple Real Estate Income PLC (“PREIP” or “Purple”), Nigeria’s real estate investment platform, has announced the opening of its initial public offer.

The Offer will be open for 25 working days, closing at midnight on 23 December 2022.

In a statement, it said the platform’s first offering will be available to all investors and following completion, Purple shares will be listed on the main market of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), the regulated market managed by Nigerian Exchange Group.

Incorporated in 2014, Purple developed its flagship asset, PurpleMaryland (formerly known as the Maryland Mall), a market-shaping asset which opened its doors to customers in 2016 – introducing the largest outdoor LED screen in West Africa. Purple has five directly controlled subsidiaries: Maryland Mall Limited, Purple Proptech Limited, Lekki Retailtainment Limited, Cible Media Limited, and Purple Asset Managers Limited, with full ownership of all subsidiaries. In March 2022, by virtue of a Scheme of Merger, Purple merged with its subsidiary, PREDCO.

Backed by prominent investors, Purple has recorded significant growth with current total assets in excess of ₦26.4 billion in FY2021.

The group said it is offering up to 2 billion new ordinary shares of the company via a public offer for sale, disclosing that it intends to use the proceeds from the offer to expand the group’s existing portfolio by diversifying its new lines of business and geographies to create more inclusive homeownership opportunities for Nigerians across the country.

“The country’s real estate sector offers many prospects, particularly for consumers increasingly demanding all-inclusive living, blending high-quality lifestyle offerings with residential and commercial assets.

“Purple is an integrated business delivering a new generation of real estate, property and lifestyle services to households and companies in Nigeria. Continuing this mission with PurpleLekki, the new construction will nurture tech-empowered communities and offer best-in-class entertainment, retail and hospitality with its experiential offering PurplePlay. Leveraging proptech, Purple creates a unique ecosystem of interconnected products offline and in the cloud, with the primary objective of building productive atmospheres that enable social and economic mobility.

“Citadines, Purple’s new serviced apartment offering for occupiers, is part of a forward plan to build on its strong foundation to bring state-of-the-art homes, working infrastructure and purpose-built student accommodation to prime locations where there is an unmet need,” read a statement by the company.

Commenting on the Offer launch, Laide Agboola, Chief Executive Officer, Purple, said: “Today is a significant step for the evolution of Nigeria’s real estate sector. By opening up participation in the real estate market to a new wave of Nigerian investors, Purple is delivering on our mission to democratise access to real estate in Nigeria. Additionally, by delivering on an expanded pipeline of new projects in a range of asset classes, we are providing new investment opportunities focused on stabilised, income-generating properties that respond to the fundamental changes to how communities in Nigeria want to work, consume and live.”