University of Nottingham Malaysian owners weigh exit, says sources

According to undisclosed source, University of Nottingham’s Malaysian owners are weighing a sale that could value the education provider at about RM500 million.

The sources also said that Boustead Holdings Bhd which has interests in finance, plantations and properties, is working with an adviser on the planned sale of its majority stake in the offshore campus of the British university. YTL Corp, which also holds a stake in the learning institution, may tag along in the exit.

Boustead owns about 66% of the university, while YTL and University of Nottingham hold approximately 4% and 30%, respectively, according to the source.

In 1998, the partnership between the three parties was formally announced, following an invitation from the education ministry to establish an overseas campus.

University Nottingham Malaysia has a 50 hectare campus in Semenyih, about 30km from Kuala Lumpur, as well as a teaching site in the country’s capital. The education centre, which offers foundation level courses through doctoral degrees, has about 5,000 students from more than 85 countries.

It is among the first branch campuses of British universities established outside of the UK, which welcomed its first students in September 2000.

Deliberations are still early and there is no certainty that Boustead and YTL will proceed with the deal, the source said. YTL executive chairman Francis Yeoh declined to comment, while representatives for Boustead and University of Nottingham Malaysia did not immediately respond to requests for comment.