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Asda owners reportedly eyeing sale of store estate to tackle rising debt

By Rachel Douglass

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Business

Image: Asda

The Issa brothers, owners of supermarket chain Asda, are said to be considering a potential sale of the retailer’s property estate as it continues to face increasingly rising debt.

The duo are reportedly pursuing the sale and leaseback of the supermarket’s store estate in a bid to reduce interest bills, according to The Telegraph.

The media outlet further noted that property experts had been appointed to assess the options for the estate, which was valued at 8.6 billion pounds in the chain’s 2021 annual report.

It is believed that the Issa brothers are expected to keep a sizable portfolio of freehold properties, even if many are sold or leased back.

The news comes on the back of similar efforts by the duo to reduce the debt of their EG Group, which was revealed last week to have sold 415 store assets in the US in a 1.5 billion dollar sale and leaseback deal.

In a press release on the matter, Zuber Issa, co-founder and co-CEO of the group, said: “Today’s announcement demonstrates the progress we continue to make to put in place a robust capital structure for the medium term that will underpin our long-term strategy and represents an important first step in this process.”

ASDA