Monzo Confirms Dublin Office While €130M North Dock Bids Fall Short
London-based digital bank Monzo is preparing to open a Dublin office as it looks to expand across Europe, using Ireland as the gateway.
The news came as it announced its first annual profit since starting nine years ago and was a welcome boost for Dublin's commercial real estate market after reports that bids for landmark office scheme North Dock have fallen significantly below the €130M asking price.
Monzo is the UK’s seventh largest bank and reported a pre-tax profit of €18M for the year to the end of March, compared with losses of £116.3M the previous year.
Although it has not given a date for the Dublin office opening, Monzo said that it is set to launch in the “coming months” and that it had begun the process for what will be its European Union base.
“In Europe, Ireland will act as our gateway to European markets and we’re in the early stages of setting up an Irish office,” Monzo Chief Executive TS Anil said in the company’s annual report.
The bank is also preparing to launch in the U.S., having recently hired a new leadership team, including Irishman Conor Walsh as head of its U.S. business.
Meanwhile, the National Asset Management Agency and Oaktree Capital could lose their investment in the North Dock office scheme in north docklands after initial bids fell significantly below the €130M being guided by CBRE on behalf of receivers, The Irish Times reported.
A sale at the guide price or above would enable the repayment of the €120M owed to the scheme’s senior lender, U.S.-based investor Pimco, plus a small surplus. However, first-round offers have reportedly come in at between €60M and €95M.
Up to 10 companies are understood to have submitted bids for the scheme, which was developed by Targeted Investment Opportunities, a fund that includes the National Automatic Merchandising Association, Oaktree Capital and Bennett Construction. Sretaw PE, Marlet Property Group, Hines, BCP, Lugus Capita, Orion Capital Managers and Patron Capital are among those believed to have made bids.
The 202K SF North Dock was one of Dublin’s first nearly-zero energy buildings and the TIO consortium had put the offices on the market last August for €155M but failed to receive a bid. The asset comprises two blocks, the 95K SF North Dock One and 107K SF North Dock Two, and Oaktree has a 60% equity stake, while NAMA holds the remaining 40%.
