Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has made an offer that would substantially increase its stake in luxury department store Selfridges.
The investor is looking to boost its share from 10% to 50% following the insolvency filing of Selfridges’ co-owner Signa.
The Saudi wealth fund offered Signa Prime Selection, the Austrian company’s property unit, just £1m for the stake, as first reported in Bloomberg.
It cited an insolvency report filed by the troubled real estate and retail business on 15 July.
PIF, which is a creditor to Signa, would reduce its claims against the firm by up to £52m as part of the deal.
The fund has been a private financial backer of Selfridges for three years and is understood to be working with advisors to undertake due diligence.
Moreover, Bangkok Bank, which provided loans for Selfridges’ Oxford Street site, would also waive about £618m in claims against Signa Prime Selection.
Signa jointly acquired Selfridges with Thailand’s Central Group for £4bn in 2022 from the Weston family, splitting the business into a property company and an operating company.
However, Signa filed for self-administered insolvency, an option under Austrian law, at the end of last year.
In April, The Times reported that Central Group was interested in buying out Signa’s remaining stake in the department store chain with another partner.
At the time, both PIF and Balenciaga-owner Kering were said to be considering acquiring a stake in the luxury retailer.