Mishcon de Reya advises Rowan Asset Management and GI Partners on £83 million acquisition of Aldwych House
Mishcon de Reya has advised Catalyst Property Investments Limited – a new joint venture between GI Partners, Rowan Asset Management and Taurus Investments – on its £82.7 million acquisition of Aldwych Investments Limited, which owns the freehold of Aldwych House. The 163,000 sq ft office building is located in the heart of London's Midtown office district.
The transaction was funded by capital from GI Partners Fund III LP with investments coming from Rowan and Taurus Investment Holdings LLC, and debt finance provided by Nationwide Building Society.
Aldwych House, built in 1926 and last renovated in 1988, is currently 89% let to 11 tenants over 10 floors. Existing tenants include Associated British Ports, London School of Economics and law firm Manches.
Rowan will act as asset manager and will oversee a major refurbishment of the building, repositioning Aldwych House in the marketplace. This undertaking will create a rebranded offering, with an iconic modern entrance and common areas, materially improving the environment for occupiers.
The Mishcon team was led by Nick Minkoff (Partner, Real Estate) and Ross Bryson (Partner, Corporate), with assistance from Jonathan Legg (Head of Real Estate Tax), Helena Liebster (Solicitor, Real Estate), Andrew Wolfin, Shantanu Sinha and Stephanie Colhoun (all Solicitors, Corporate).
Nick Jacobs, Founder and CEO of Rowan Asset Management, said: “Aldwych House is a classic ‘Rowan asset’ which will provide our capital partners with both income and opportunity. We are thrilled to have bought a product which will benefit from an occupier-sensitive but extensive re-branding and refurbishment. The building is located in a key area of the London market in which we have great confidence. We think Midtown is going to see strong rental growth and is becoming a primary occupier destination. At the micro level there are considerable initiatives in the subsectors of Aldwych and The Strand which should further enhance this location.”
Brad Altberger, Managing Director of GI Partners, commented: “Aldwych House is an excellent opportunity for us to invest in a high quality asset in the central London office market. Purchasing Aldwych House at just over £500 per sq ft, we think the downside is well protected. In addition, we believe there is potential for significant upside as the building is let at below market rents. GI Partners is also actively seeking similar acquisition targets which require intensive asset management and we have a significant amount of dry powder in our $1.9 billion Fund III to execute this strategy.”