Property group Pareto and Southern Sun’s Hospitality Property Fund are a step closer to buying full control of several properties in the Sandton area from Liberty after receiving approval from the Competition Commission.
The commission has recommended that the Competition Tribunal approve the two parties’ purchase of assets valued at more than R1bn. The assets include the Sandton Towers, Garden Court Sandton City, the Sandton Convention Centre and the Virgin Active gym, collectively known as “The Sandton Consortium of properties”.
Pareto, which already owns 25% of Liberty’s Sandton Consortium, will pay about R370m to increase its stake to 50%. Southern Sun, meanwhile, will pay about R735m cash for a 50% stake.
According to a regulatory filing by Southern Sun, the deal sharpens its focus on prime hotels in South Africa’s top business hubs, and also gives the group “more control over world-class properties while deepening partnerships with trusted long-term partners”.
Pareto CEO Malose Kekana said the deal “is not just a property transaction — it is the transfer of a significant legacy that goes to the heart of Liberty’s founding by Donald Gordon”.
The assets are a testament to the ”visionary entrepreneurship and excellence of those who came before", he added. “Preserving this legacy is a fundamental responsibility at the heart of the transaction.”
Pareto, owned by the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF), recently embarked on its first residential project, converting Menlyn Office Park into residential units in partnership with Divercity Urban Property Group.
Valued at R850m, the project marks the group’s move beyond the retail sector and aims to support long-term defensive capital growth while bringing more residents into the Menlyn Shopping Centre.
Beyond growing our balance sheet, these acquisitions add diversity. With the addition of these hotels, we gain our first significant exposure to the hospitality industry. We have always had a minority presence, but this is now the largest in our portfolio.
— Malose Kekana, Pareto CEO
“The Sandton Sun hotel, which is not situated on the target property, will continue to be owned by Liberty and Pareto in their existing proportions of 75% and 25%, respectively, with Southern Sun continuing to operate the hotel under a long-term lease agreement,” Southern Sun said in the filing.
Kekana said that 95% of Pareto’s current property portfolio is retail. “Beyond growing our balance sheet, these acquisitions add diversity. With the addition of these hotels, we gain our first significant exposure to the hospitality industry,” he said.
“We have always had a minority presence, but this is now the largest in our portfolio. It keeps the business active in the sector and maintains Pareto’s involvement in hospitality.”
Kekana said Pareto already owns land and properties that it considers “bulk” assets. “Our properties are very large, often regional centres. We’ve seen an increase in the number of shopping centres, particularly convenience-focused ones,” he said.
Last year’s South African Property Owners Association retail trends report found that smaller-format centres benefited from their proximity and convenience and surpassed super regional malls.
Kekana added that it does not make sense to increase the size of already large shopping centres.
“We find ourselves with these land parcels, or bulk, and the highest and best use, based on market research, could be office, healthcare, residential, or even hotel and storage,” he said.
“We have decided to focus on mixed-use developments that bring people to our shopping centres. It’s about utilising the land or bulk that we already have,” he said.
Update and correction: February 4 2026
This story has more detail about the price of the transaction and clarifies that the Sandton Sun hotel is not part of the properties to be bought.
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