Blackstone, CIC to Buy Japanese Loan Portfolio

Private equity firm Blackstone Group has teamed up with China Investment Corp. to buy a Japanese loan portfolio from Morgan Stanley, Reuters reported, citing an article in the Financial Times. Blackstone and China Investment Corp., the $300 billion sovereign wealth fund, paid only 35 cents on the dollar for the portfolio, which had a face value of $1.1 billion, Reuters said.

(Reuters) – China Investment Corp. [CIC.UL], the country’s $300 billion sovereign wealth management, has teamed up with private equity fund Blackstone Group LP to buy a Japanese loan portfolio from Morgan Stanley at a steep discount, the Financial Times reported on Monday.

CIC and Blackstone paid 35 cents on the dollar for the portfolio, which had a face value of $1.1 billion, the newspaper reported, citing sources familiar with the matter, adding that CIC had put up most of the money.

Morgan Stanley funds could lose the keys to two prime office buildings in Tokyo when the debt matures in the next few months, sources told Reuters last week.

Morgan Stanley’s investments were made through funds known as MSREF and the $4.2 billion MSREF V fund, with an April 15 repayment deadline for loans on the 32-storey Shinagawa Grand Central Tower. [ID:nTOE70405V]

Officials of the firms were either not available for comment or could not be reached. (Reporting by Denny Thomas; Editing by Chris Lewis)