Manulife Enters Australian Real Estate Market

News provided by

Jan 31, 2018, 09:00 ET

Acquires 800 Collins Street in Melbourne

TSX/NYSE/PSE: MFC
SEHK:945

TORONTO, Jan. 31, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - Manulife Real Estate today announced that it has acquired 800 Collins Street, a 14-storey, 317,335 square foot, Class A office tower located in Melbourne, Australia. 800 Collins Street was built in 2010 and is fully leased. This transaction is the first Australian commercial real estate acquisition in Manulife's global real estate portfolio.

Located in the Docklands Central Business District (CBD), an extension of the Melbourne CBD, 800 Collins Street offers direct access to public transportation and close proximity to convenient eateries and retail amenities.

The investment in Australia is part of Manulife Real Estate's pan-Asian core real estate investment strategy created to support Manulife's rapid growth in Asia.

"Australia's economy is enjoying its 26^th year of consecutive annual economic growth and Melbourne is one of its top two cities in economic size and depth and breadth of the commercial real estate market," said Kevin Adolphe, President and CEO of Manulife Real Estate. "This acquisition enables us to gain key exposure in the City as we diversify our real estate portfolio and represents a significant milestone as we execute our global real estate strategy."

"Collins Street is the most prestigious commercial address in Melbourne," said Kenny Lam, Managing Director, Head of Asia Real Estate Investments, Manulife Real Estate. "The desirability of Collins Street as a commercial hub is highlighted by the quality and diversity of tenants and the movement of organizations into the area."

Manulife's global real estate investment portfolio includes more than 62 million square feet of office, industrial and select retail and residential properties across Asia, Australia, Canada and the United States.

About Manulife Real Estate and John Hancock Real Estate

Manulife Real Estate is the global real estate arm of Manulife, operating as John Hancock Real Estate in the U.S. and Manulife Real Estate in all other parts of the world. Manulife Real Estate has fully integrated in-house capabilities and 80 years of experience as an active investor, owner, developer and asset manager of commercial real estate. Diversified by both geography and asset type, the portfolio consists primarily of prime office and industrial properties, as well as select retail and multi-family residential properties, in key metropolitan centers throughout Asia, Australia, Canada and the United States. In addition to equity real estate, Manulife Real Estate manages the space requirements and own use facilities for Manulife and John Hancock operations around the world. Manulife Real Estate also extends its real estate asset management expertise to institutional investors. As at September 30, 2017, the Manulife Real Estate portfolio totaled more than 62 million square feet with AUM market value of C$21.3 billion (US$17.1.6 billion). Additional information about Manulife Real Estate can be found at http://www.manuliferealestate.com/.

About Manulife

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services group that helps people achieve their dreams and aspirations by putting customers' needs first and providing the right advice and solutions. We operate primarily as John Hancock in the United States and Manulife elsewhere. We provide financial advice, insurance, as well as wealth and asset management solutions for individuals, groups and institutions. At the end of 2016, we had approximately 35,000 employees, 70,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving more than 22 million customers. As of September 30, 2017, we had over $1 trillion (US$806 billion) in assets under management and administration, and in the previous 12 months we made $27.1 billion in payments to our customers. Our principal operations are in Asia, Canada and the United States where we have served customers for more than 100 years. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges and under '945' in Hong Kong.