Maple Leaf Asia Pacific, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed China Maple Leaf Educational Systems, announced on July 23 that it had signed an agreement to purchase the entire share capital of Lucrum Development for $68 million.

Lucrum Development owns the school property at 11 Hillside Drive, which occupies an 81,468 sq ft site. It contains 30 classrooms, including a music studio, science labs and arts studios, as well as a multi-purpose hall. The property is currently leased to Hillside World Academy.

The seller, Lucrum Fund, is part of private-equity firm Lucrum Capital, which had purchased the property on a 103-year lease (with effect from November 2012) for $35 million four years ago. It spent $5 million refurbishing and enhancing the 70-year-old buildings on the site.

The property was put on the market for sale last November with a price tag of $70 million.

The acquisition of 11 Hillside marks Maple Leaf’s maiden foray into Singapore. Founded in 1995, the group is one of China’s biggest independent, international school operators, with 46 schools and more than 17,700 students in the country. 

11 Hillside Drive is currently leased to Hillside World Academy