Vote of confidence for London as Deloitte office sold to Hong Kong real estate business for £255m
A large City of London office, used by Deloitte, has been sold to a Hong Kong-based real estate company for £255m.
The 147,000 sq ft office, Athene Place at 66 Shoe Lane, recently underwent a full refurbishment before the sale.
In June 2018 Henderson Park bought the space after Deloitte had vacated the building. The property investor then secured a 75,000 sq ft pre-lease with a 15 year term back to Deloitte, which agreed a further pre-let for the rest of the building in October 2019.
The building will form part of Deloitte’s wider London campus, being opposite the company’s new headquarters at 1 New Street Square.
Nick Weber, founding partner of Henderson Park, said the sale underscored the ongoing appeal of prime, central London offices to international investors.
“We acquired Athene Place in June 2018 after the Brexit referendum with a view to undertaking a full refurbishment to create a first class, prime new workplace that could meet the specific needs of the modern occupier both now and in the future,” he said.
“We put a strong focus on technology, sustainability and, with features such as roof terraces and enlarged balconies providing fresh air spaces, the wellness of personnel. Within a short space of time we had fully pre-let the building to its former occupier and were then able to work with Deloitte to tailor the refurbishment works to its requirements, creating a first-class institutional quality asset offering long term income from one of the world’s leading advisory businesses.”