Franchise rights for 20 years for McDonald’s Singapore and Malaysia could fetch S$542.8 million (US$400 million).
The rights have been put on the market as part of McDonald’s Corp’s international turnaround plan put in place by new CEO Steve Easterbrook last year. With a US$112 billion market value, the corporation is revamping its ownership models throughout Asia, including plans to offload its China, Hong Kong and South Korea master franchises.
McDonald’s has adopted a “development licensee model” for Malaysia and Singapore, says a Singapore spokesman. It is negotiating with candidates “committed to helping accelerate growth and innovation in Malaysia and Singapore”.
McDonald’s owns most of its outlets in Asia, and eventually aims to have 95 per cent of its restaurants in the region under local ownership.
Singapore has more than 120 McDonald’s restaurants with about 9000 employees, while in
Malaysia there are more than 250 restaurants.
