Ekuinas sells stake in San Francisco Coffee to S’pore-listed group

The San Francisco Coffee outlet in Bangsar is on Jalan Telawi 3

KUALA LUMPUR: Ekuiti Nasional Bhd (Ekuinas) and its partner Datuk Abdul Rahim Mohd Zin will divest their 100% stake in Lyndarahim Ventures Sdn Bhd, the holding company of San Francisco Coffee (SF Coffee), for RM24mil.

In a statement, the government-linked private equity fund management company said it was disposing of its 90% equity stake in SF Coffee as part of its restructuring exercise of food and beverages portfolio.

Ekuinas, together with Abdul Rahim, had signed a conditional agreement with a consortium comprising Platinum Appreciation Sdn Bhd and Brothers Coffee Ventures Sdn Bhd (formerly known as Brothers Burger Ventures Sdn Bhd) for the divestment of the interests in SF Coffee.

Platinum Appreciation is a wholly-owned unit of Envictus International Holdings Ltd, a company listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange.

Ekuinas said the completion of this exercise was subjected to conditions precedent, including Envictus’ shareholders’approval, which was expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2016.

“The consortium was selected after it submitted the best offer under a sale process that attracted the interest of a number of local and international parties,” it said.

The divestment was estimated to substantially cover the original cost of investment and represented a minimal negative internal rates of return of 5%, it said.

Ekuinas chief executive officer, Datuk Abdul Rahman Ahmad, said the divestment would enable the company to fully focus on its core casual dining and dessert franchise segments, covering brands such as Tony Roma’s, Manhattan Fish Market, New York Steak Shack and Coolblog. 

“Together, these brands generate a combined revenue of approximately RM300mil operating through more than 400 outlets across several regions,” Abdul Rahman said.

This latest divestment is part of Ekuinas’ exit and crystallisation of asset strategy as a private equity firm, after more than six years of operation.

To-date, Ekuinas has undertaken five partial and total exits with total realisation proceeds of more than RM1bil. - Bernama