This Week's London Deal Sheet
A weekly compilation of Greater London and beyond's biggest leases, sales, financing deals, construction updates and personnel moves. Have news you’d like to submit? Email tim.clark@bisnow.com.
U.S. private equity firm LCN Capital Partners has completed a £250M forward funding deal for pharmaceutical giant Unilever’s new headquarters in Kingston upon Thames.
The funding deal was negotiated with Cube Real Estate, and it will see Unilever lease two buildings that total 282K SF from the middle of the decade.
The works will see the demolition of a nearby car park, with groundworks beginning in the autumn, according to Costar News.
Cube Real Estate was advised by JLL, with Unilever represented by Cushman & Wakefield.
SALES
M3 Capital Partners has completed the sale of Extra MSA Group to a consortium of institutional investors for more than £500M. Extra is a specialised developer and owner of strategically located motorway services area sites in the UK and operates sites on the M25, M40, M1, M1, M62 and M42.
M3 will retain ownership of London Gateway Services, a strategically located site on the M1, 10 miles northwest of the City of London. M3 and Extra were advised on the sale of Extra by CBRE, Harris Williams, Mayer Brown and Shoosmiths. The consortium was advised by Evercore and White & Case.
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Valor Real Estate Partners has completed a portfolio acquisition in London, comprising six urban warehouse assets, for £70M.
The assets, which offer short-term refurbishment potential and total 157K SF, has been purchased from the Milton Group. The portfolio includes among other assets a single warehouse unit in Beckton and an industrial estate in Byfleet, south-west London, comprising two warehouse units. Both assets are let to BSS Group, a distributor of heating and mechanical services equipment.
The transaction means Valor has now deployed about £1B in London since the start of 2021.
LEASES
Genomics England Limited has announced plans to move its HQ to a major life sciences cluster in Canary Wharf.
Genomics England will take 18K SF in the new 750K SF commercial laboratory building that is being built by a joint venture between Canary Wharf Group and Kadans Science Partner.
Canary Wharf Group was advised by CBRE and JLL. SHB Real Estate acted for Genomics England.
FINANCE
HB Reavis has secured a £138M green loan from HSBC to refinance its Bloom Clerkenwell property in central London. The property, adjacent to Farringdon station, is focussed on sustainability and wellbeing with a fitness club, 248 cycle spaces and 11% of the building given over to accessible outside terrace space.
The building has a total of 145K SF over nine floors, with 136K SF of this dedicated to office space. Ready to Work currently occupies 9.4K SF on the first floor.
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Qatari Diar has secured a £400M green loan for 32K SF of amenity space and 97 new apartments at Phase 4 of the Chelsea Barracks scheme.
The new financing was provided by a consortium of five lenders; Credit Suisse, Standard Chartered, Allied Irish Bank (GB), Qatar National Bank and National Bank of Kuwait.
Qatari Diar stated that it has achieved more than £100M in sales in 2022 so far at the Chelsea barracks site, including the sale of 2 Whistler Square for £52M, and 3 Mulberry Square for £34M. The new funding abides by green loan principles.
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South-east housing association Raven has secured a £300M finance package to help transform its portfolio of homes into net-zero properties.
The housing association has worked with Savills to secure the funding, which will ensure it can meet its corporate plan to upgrade all homes to an EPC rating of C by 2030 and then net-zero carbon by 2050.
PEOPLE
Pan-European real estate investment manager Europa Capital has appointed Russell Chaplin to the newly created role of chief investment officer. The new role reflects the growth of Europa Capital’s investment platform and will see Chaplin work alongside Managing Partner Rob Sim to help shape the vision and strategy of the firm’s investment goals.
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Later living provider Riverstone has appointed Martin Earp as its new CEO.
Earp takes over from Jason Leek, who has led Riverstone since 2019, and he is tasked with leading the provider with the next phase of its expansion programme. Riverstone will see its first residences open in Kensington and Fulham this year.
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Legal & General Capital has hired Vanisha Thakrar as its new head of housing investment.
Thakrar has been appointed to lead LGC's growth in a number of areas, including build-to-rent, build-to-sell and affordable housing. Thakrar has 13 years’ experience in the real estate investment sector having previously held the role of director in the European transactions group Harrison Street. Thakrar has also worked at Macquarie Group and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.
