Dubai-based Arqaam Capital has sold its stake in Chesterton to the two other shareholders, Vincent Tchenguiz’s Property Consensus Group and Credit Mercantile Group.

The trio formed a consortium to buy out the company for around £4m when it went into receivership in 2005.

Arqaam Capital, formerly known as CiC International, is now selling its chunk back to the other shareholders and has achieved an estimated return in excess of 50% for its shareholders. It refused to confirm how much it sold the stake for.

Mission accomplished

Since the consortium bought Chesterton, they have effectively turned the company around and increased revenue by 100%.

Dennis Wijsmuller, chief operating officer at Arqaam Capital, said: ‘Obviously, our primary focus is to build partnerships that deliver excellent returns for our investors, but it’s also very satisfying to know we’ve helped turn around a two-hundred year old brand like Chesterton.

'We consider this mission as being accomplished, and now look forward to delivering similar success with other opportunities we have in Europe which are currently in the pipeline.’

The consortium also expanded Chesterton’s network by acquiring real estate agencies in London and Kent, establishing an overseas franchised office in Southern France, and is now considering expanding into the Middle East in future.

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