European investment manager MiddleCap has struck a deal with the Fishmongers’ Company, which will allow the redevelopment of a 1970s City office block.

The Fishmongers’ Company, the 750-year-old City of London livery company, has granted a new 155-year headlease to MiddleCap, which will allow it to redevelop Seal House, on the Thames on the north side of London Bridge.

MiddleCap is teaming up with fellow European investor PPF in a 50/50 joint venture to redevelop Seal House, with MiddleCap acting as development manager. The new lease will allow the creation of an Eric Parry-designed 141K SF office building next to the Fishmongers’ Hall. The 12-storey scheme will have a publicly accessible roof garden, and the redevelopment will create public access to the riverside.

MiddleCap bought the long leasehold on the building from Sellar in 2019, and it has been in negotiations with the Fishmongers’ Company about the lease renewal since.

Demand for London office space has been subdued since the pandemic, but developers are pushing on with new schemes because the best quality space is still commanding premium rents. AXA recently secured £100 per SF rents at its 22 Bishopsgate tower, a recent record.