Selfridges receives competitive bid from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund

Selfridges has attracted an offer from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) to boost its stake to 50%. This comes as the hunt continues for a co-owner after the previous owner Signa fell into insolvency last year.

Back in April, it was revealed that 50% owner Central Group was exploring ways to take greater control of the department store chain by buying out Signa’s remaining stake in the retailer with another partner. Central Group is in talks with several sovereign wealth funds and tycoons about a potential partnership.

Now PIF, which already owns a 10% share in the Selfridges properties, has offered to buy the remaining 40% stake for a cash price of £1 million ($1.3 million) from Signa’s flagship property unit, according to documents seen by Bloomberg News.

The division of the troubled real estate and retail empire filed the insolvency report on 15 July. The properties include sites in London’s Oxford Street and Manchester.

Selfridges was acquired by Central Group and Signa for £4 billion in 2021 from the Weston family, with the business separated between an operating company and a property company.

However, Signa - owned by billionaire Rene Benko - filed for insolvency in December 2023 amid financial troubles, bringing the future ownership structure of the department store into question. Following this, Central Group moved to take control of the operating business late last year, converting a £317 million loan into a majority stake in the retailer.

However, Signa still owns 50% of the property company and holds around 35% of the operating company.

PIF, which is a creditor to Signa, would reduce its claims against the group by up to £52 million as part of the new deal. What's more, Bangkok Bank, which provided the senior loan for Selfridges’ Oxford Street site, would also waive certain claims against Signa Prime to the amount of about £617 million (€733 million).