RealFoundations Guides Successful Merger of Equity One with Regency Centers

DALLAS, June 8, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Regency Centers Corporation (NYSE: REG) ("Regency") engaged RealFoundations ("RF") to provide guidance, planning, program management and data conversion services in the enterprise merger of Equity One, Inc. (NYSE: EQY) ("Equity One") with and into Regency.  This merger integration formed a combined company with a total market capitalization of approximately $16 billion, resulting in inclusion into the S&P 500 Index.

The merger further established Regency Centers as the foremost national shopping center REIT with a high-quality portfolio of 429 properties comprising 59 million square feet of GLA. Including projects successfully transitioned during the merger, Regency now has over $500 million in developments and redevelopments. The effective and efficient integrations of the companies have already allowed Regency to realize the anticipated $27 million of G & A synergies. "We are extremely proud of how our merger integration has progressed and are very pleased with all the work RealFoundations has provided", stated Lisa Palmer, Regency Centers President and CFO. "The combined Regency and RF teams made extraordinary progress integrating the companies in a very short period of time. It is hard to imagine us achieving these timelines without the benefit of RealFoundations."

To manage the fast-paced merger, Regency and RealFoundations created a program of 24 projects within six work streams, with RF providing additional project management to help guide the Regency teams during the integration. The project management, meeting structures, prioritization methods, and cross-departmental communication RealFoundations facilitated allowed issues to be identified early and decisions to be made quickly. "The collaboration between the Regency and RealFoundations teams was the key to making our merger integration a success", says Mike Mas, Regency Centers Managing Director of Finance.  "The formalized process RF brought to the table, supported by the Regency team's prior experience with integrating real estate companies, allowed our personnel to maintain focus on key priorities and achieve our planned objectives."

This merger proved to be one of the smoothest company integrations with which RealFoundations has been involved.  "The leadership from the Regency Executive Team and the professional dedication from the Regency team was instrumental in making this merger a success" commented David Srour, Managing Director with RealFoundations.

Within the Technology Asset Integration work stream, RealFoundations provided JD Edwards data-migration services to combine Equity One's system with that of Regency's.  In addition, RF also managed the projects needed to transition the entire Equity One infrastructure into Regency's existing platform.  "With RF's guidance, the overall merger and, more specifically, the integration of the two information technology platforms has gone very smoothly", says Dale Johnston, Regency Centers' SVP & Chief Information Officer. "We believe this to be the fastest REIT merger measured from announcement to close since 2011. Under that type of timeframe, we would not be where we are today without the expertise and assistance provided by RealFoundations."

About RealFoundations RealFoundations is a professional services firm focused on the real estate industry. With offices on four continents, 400+ client-serving professionals and off-shore delivery capabilities in China and India, RealFoundations provides Management Consulting, Managed Services and Energy Solutions to developers, owners/operators, service providers, institutional investors and corporate occupiers. From the building itself to the way it is used, operated and financed, no firm understands the inner workings of the entire real estate ecosystem as well as RealFoundations. We Make Real Estate Run Better.

About Regency Centers Corporation Regency is the preeminent national owner, operator and developer of neighborhood and community shopping centers. Regency has developed 227 shopping centers since 2000, representing an investment at completion of more than $3.5 billion. Operating as a fully integrated real estate company, Regency is a qualified real estate investment trust that is self-administered and self-managed, and a member of the S&P 500 index.

SOURCE RealFoundations