The consideration has positioned the listed property sector of the JSE Securities Exchange SA for a showdown which is likely to involve five listed companies, two property asset management groups and a financial services firm.

Two of these listed companies are A-prop and iFour, who are believed to be considering a merger with Bonatla. The other company is Redefine Income Fund, which had a significant stake in A-prop and also held interests in Bonatla and iFour.

With all these stakes, Redefine was believed to be among the main contenders to influence the future strategic direction of Bonatla, iFour and Arnold.

Redefine brought with it financial muscle in the form of its ally, CorpCapital.

Published yesterday, the Fairvest consideration looked like an attempt to thwart the three-way merger consideration.

Two major property asset management companies are watching this war and may have a hand in it, because its outcome will deliver a lucrative management contract.

The asset management companies are Catalyst, which manages Bonatla, and Gensec Property Asset management, which is attached to Fairvest.

'As far as we are concerned the Fairvest announcement was premature,' said Bonatla chairman Ben van der Ross.

He said the company was trading under a cautionary notice because it was considering a number of options, including the Fairvest proposal.

Redefine CEO Peter Penhall said his group had spotted valueunlocking opportunities in Bonatla when the group announced intentions to restructure its capital structure.

Fairvest CEO and founder director of Bonatla, Niki Vontas, who is the pillar of the Fairvest move against the merger consideration between Bonatla, iFour and A-prop refused to comment citing a cautionary notice.

He has in the past uttered statements suggesting that he would not allow the Bonatla, iFour and A-prop consideration to go through without a fight.