Babcock & Brown Ltd., Australia's second-largest securities firm, and U.S.-based Gates Group said they've invested in Imperial Parking Corp., Canada's largest parking lot operator, signaling the start of their partnership.
Babcock & Brown Gates Parking Investments LLC will acquire parking management operations in North America, the two companies said in a statement distributed by PRNewswire. Terms of the Imperial, or Impark, investment weren't disclosed.
Babcock & Brown wants to take advantage of opportunities to buy transport, power and property assets in Europe and the U.S. In September, Managing Director Phil Green said the Sydney-based bank was considering raising capital for publicly traded and closely held investment funds in Europe and the U.S.
"It is population growth, space and capacity constraint issues that make parking lots attractive," said Sondal Bensan, who helps manage $30 billion at BT Financial Group in Sydney and holds Babcock stock.
Babcock & Brown Gates Parking will source equity and debt capital from two private investment partnerships formed and managed by Babcock & Brown, according to the statement. Vancouver-based Impark manages more than 1,900 parking locations with 480,000 parking spaces throughout Canada and the U.S.
About Babcock & Brown
Babcock & Brown is a global investment and advisory firm with longstanding capabilities in structured finance and the creation, syndication and management of asset and cash flow-based investments. Babcock & Brown was founded in San Francisco in 1977 and listed on the Australian Stock Exchange on 6 October 2004.
About Impark
Founded in 1962, Imperial Parking (Impark) is an industry leader in parking management. With over 1,800 parking facilities, 425,000 spaces in Canada and the United States and 3,700 employees, Impark is the third largest parking management company in North America.
Impark operates parking facilities on behalf of property owners and asset managers under parking management agreements and through providing bankable leases. Impark has a reputation for offering superior service to its customers and clients and is well known for employing leading edge technology in parking solutions.
