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U.S. insurer W.R. Berkley has shown it is a cut above rivals when it comes to real estate investment having secured an £800M sale of its Scalpel skyscraper in the City of London.
Singaporean investor Ho Bee is in talks to purchase the 190-meter-tall tower, React News reported.
A number of investors had eyed the tower, including Wing Tai and Hong Kong’s Chinachem Group, React said.
Located at 52 Lime Street and designed by architects Kohn Pedersen Fox the 406K SF Scalpel tower is nestled within the core City cluster close to the Gherkin, Leadenhall Building and newly completed 22 Bishopsgate.
The project was approved by City planners in January 2013 and was acquired and built on behalf of W.R. Berkley. The insurance firm is expected to net a 3.5% yield on the sale.
The tower had been placed on the market in the autumn 2020, with agents Cushman & Wakefield and Eastdil Secured appointed to manage the disposal.
The Scalpel sale comes amid a flurry of investment activity in central London. In January Google bought the Renzo Piano-designed Central St Giles scheme near Holborn for £730M.
The investment activity comes as recent research published by occupier advisory firm DeVono found that a number of trends are emerging post-Covid for the office market in London.
These include occupiers looking to take on leases for small suites and shorter terms, with average lease lengths now set at 5.5 years.
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