City landmark Royal Exchange close to being sold for £80m
THE OWNERS of the Royal Exchange are understood to be close to signing a deal to sell the historic landmark next to Bank station for £80m.
The Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, formed in 2011 by the merger of troubled Anglo and Irish Nationwide, hired property advisers CBRE last month to market the long leasehold in the 450-year-old building.
Bids were accepted last week and the sale is expected to be completed this week.
The City of London Corporation – which jointly owns the freehold with the Mercers’ Company – and Dutch fund Meyer Bergman are both said to be interested.
The Royal Exchange was built in 1565 and has been twice destroyed by fire, first during the Great Fire of London in 1666 and then in 1838, with the new one opened by Queen Victoria in 1844.
It is now home to restaurants, as well as shops housing luxury brands including Mont Blanc and Smythson.