Asda’s assets used to fund EG Group UK and Ireland takeover

Last week, it was announced billionaire brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa would pay £450m to help fund Asda’s acquisition of EG Group, their forecourt operation. However, the money is being funded from the sale of Asda’s assets, according to a report in The Times. 

The £450m in equity stumped up by its owners is said to come entirely from the £1.7bn they received from the sale of 27 Asda warehouses to investment giant Blackstone in a top-of-the-market sale and leaseback deal in 2021. 

The brothers acquired Asda in 2020 and its merger with EG Group will create a retail empire comprising 581 supermarkets and 700 forecourts, with sales worth £30bn. 

Critics of the deal have argued that it’s a clever way for the owners to shift debt from EG Group in the face of ballooning interest rates.