EL SEGUNDO, CA—Concluding the latest in a series of net lease M&A deals, Griffin Capital Essential Asset REIT Inc. and Signature Office REIT have wrapped up their $3-billion merger. The union was originally announced in late November 2014, and creates a company with 70 properties across 20 states, comprising mainly single-tenant office and industrial assets.

The merger enlarges GCEAR's portfolio from 13.3 million square feet to 15.9 million, adding a tenant base that includes State Farm Mutual Auto Insurance Co., GE Oil & Gas Inc., Time Warner Cable Southeast LLC, and NEC Corp. of America. It's seen as highly complementary to the non-traded REIT's existing portfolio.

“This high-quality diversified portfolio adds depth and breadth to GCEAR, which now has a total capitalization of approximately $3 billion,” says Kevin Shields, GCEAR's chairman and CEO. “The additional scale provides us and our stockholders, including the former Signature stockholders, with greater potential to execute a value-enhancing liquidity event.”

Under the terms of the merger agreement, each share of Signature common stock has been converted into 2.04 newly issued shares of GCEAR common stock. When the deal was announced this past November, it also called for the refinancing of Signature's $159 million in debt.

Post-merger, Shields will continue in his dual roles at GCEAR; he is also chairman and CEO of Griffin Capital Corp., the REIT's sponsor. GCEAR's current management team will also remain in place.

Robert A. Stanger & Co. acted as financial advisor for GCEAR, while Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz PC served as its legal advisor. Eastdil Secured acted as financial advisor for Signature.