M&G Real Estate buys Bloomberg’s new European headquarters in the City for £93m
M&G Real Estate has bought Bloomberg’s new European headquarters near Mansion House in the City, in a £92.5m deal.
The fund manager said it has bought the freehold ground lease of Bloomberg Place from Legal & General Property, which put the site up for sale two months ago after more than 60 years of ownership.
The vast 750,000 square feet office scheme, designed by Foster + Partners, hosted a topping out ceremony in September to mark building’s near halfway completion, attended by the media giant’s founder and former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg and Lord Foster.
Bloomberg, which owns the long leasehold interest, will move from their current offices in Finsbury Square once the building is completed in 2017.
It will comprise of two buildings connected by a linking bridge and house a 250-seat theatre, 18 restaurants, 4600 desk spaces and a new entrance to Bank Underground station.
An ancient Roman temple of Mithras, which was discovered on the Walbrook Square site in the 1950s, will be moved into a new museum space attached to the headquarters. Over 14,000 artifacts have been discovered at the site, the earliest dating back nearly 2000 years.
M&G Real Estate's investment management director, Shailendra Shah, said: "Investments of this scale and quality in the heart of Canada rarely come to market, particularly those with such a strong covenant from a long-term leaseholder,"
"With a tenant committed in this structure, this deal will provide long-term, stable income growth for our investors,” she added.
Nigel Fox from Capital Real Estate Partners advised Legal & General Property on the sale.