Pace Pakistan board approves major restructuring

Pace (Pakistan) Ltd  has set in motion its most ambitious clean‑up yet. In a brief notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange on June 23, 2025, the Lahore‑based developer said its board had authorised the sale of the group’s entire 56.79 % holding (9.161 million ordinary shares) in Pace Super Mall (Pvt) Ltd to sister outfit First Capital Securities Corporation Ltd (FCSC) for cash at “not less than fair value.” The same resolution empowers management to raise fresh equity and ask lenders to swap part of their loans for shares, completing a three‑part balance‑sheet overhaul.

Investors signalled cautious approval: Pace’s share price, battered for the past three years by fire‑related closures and litigation, has risen 8 % since the notice, out‑performing the wider KSE‑All Share index in a falling market.

The company will dispose of 9,161,528 shares – its entire controlling stake – in Pace Super Mall, a vehicle that owns the beleaguered Gulberg flagship. FCSC, itself controlled by the Taseer family and already the largest shareholder in Pace, will pay cash. No valuation has been disclosed, but at par (Rs 10 each) the paper value is Rs 91.6 million; analysts note that Gulberg plots transact at several multiples of book, suggesting a likely consideration in the Rs 1.5–2.0 billion range once independent valuers pronounce.