Standard Life Investments to acquire 100 Cheapside, London

Standard Life Investments Pooled Pension Property Fund has agreed a deal with joint venture partners CarVal Investors, Orion Capital Managers, the City of London Corporation and Quadrant Estates, to acquire 100 Cheapside in the City of London.

100 Cheapside is a 100,000 sq ft Grade A, office-led mixed-use, speculative building in the heart of the City, between Bank and St Paul’s Cathedral.

The Fund has agreed to acquire the building with vacant possession upon completion of construction, which is due in early November 2014. The deal was agreed with the joint venture partnership following an off-market approach and the Fund will undertake a leasing campaign following completion.

The new building, led by development manager Quadrant Estates, will achieve BREEAM Excellent and LEED Platinum sustainability ratings.

David Stewart, Fund Manager of the Standard Life Investments Pooled Pension Property Fundsaid: "We're delighted to have agreed terms to acquire this prime City building. It will be a valuable addition to the Fund’s existing portfolio of high quality investment properties."

Tristram Gethin, founding partner of Quadrant Estates, on behalf of the development joint venture,added: "We are extremely pleased that 100 Cheapside has attracted a major institutional investor, such as Standard Life Investments. The building is of the highest City specification and in a core location. We are very proud of this building delivered by our highly dedicated team."

Michael Cassidy, Chairman of the City of London’s Property Investment Board, said: "Cheapside is right in the heart of the Square Mile business district and retains its local feel while being part of a globally-connected cluster of financial and business services. We are very pleased to be part of a project that enhances not only the City, but London."

CBRE acted for Standard Life Investments, BNP Paribas acted for the developer.

Ends

Enquiries

Justin St Clair-Charles, firstlight PR, 020 3617 7233; 07769 644 059; sliteam@firstlightpr.com

Notes to Editors:

Standard Life Investments

1.     With assets under management of £195.1 billion (30/06/14), Standard Life Investments is one of Europe’s leading investment houses.

2.     Standard Life Investments was launched as an investment management company in 1998. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Standard Life Investments (Holdings) Limited, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of Standard Life plc.

3.     Headquartered in Edinburgh Standard Life Investments’ maintains offices in a number of locations around the globe including Boston, Hong Kong, London, Beijing, Montreal, Sydney, Dublin, Paris and Seoul.  In addition, we have close relationships with leading domestic players in Asia, including HDFC Asset Management in India and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank in Japan.

4.     Standard Life Investments Pooled Pension Property Fund has a proven track record in delivering commercial property returns for investors since its launch in 1984.

Quadrant Estates

Quadrant Estates is a private property development and investment company founded in 1997. Its strategy is to generate strong investor returns through intelligent asset selection and effective asset management. The firm’s current portfolio has a gross value of circa £1 billion and includes:-

• 480,000 sq ft of prime City Office developments
• 610,000 sq ft of retail warehousing
• 22 acre mixed use development in Portsmouth
• Eureka Park a 100-acre office and mixed-use development in Ashford, Kent.

www.quadrantestates.com

Contact: Claire Barry, 07795 672706; cbarry@blue-hour.co.uk

CarVal Investors 

CarVal Investors is a leader in managing opportunistic value investments.  Since 1987, CarVal Investors has acquired more than $76 billion in assets in 5,040 transactions in 70 countries. The firm has opportunistically invested over $9.5 billion in more than 1,000 global real estate transactions since 1991. Today, CarVal Investors has over $10 billion in assets under management in both credit and real estate strategies. In Europe, CarVal Investors’ real estate team focuses on the office, industrial, residential and retail sectors in the U.K. and France. www.carvalinvestors.com.

Contact:  Serge Maton, 020 7292 7745; serge.maton@carval.com

Orion Capital Managers, L.L.P 

Orion Capital Managers, L.L.P ("Orion") is a European real estate investment firm formed in 1999. Its business is commercial real estate investment management on behalf of major investors from around the world.

Orion invests in the full spectrum of commercial real estate in Europe, including direct assets, listed companies, private companies, and real estate debt.

Orion has offices in London, Madrid, Milan and Paris and is wholly owned by its Founding Partners Aref H. Lahham, Van J. Stults, and Bruce C. Bossom who have worked as a cohesive management team for over 20 years. Prior to forming Orion, the Partners established LaSalle Investment Management in Europe.

Orion is experienced, proactive and well positioned having created Orion European Real Estate Funds I, II, III and IV and the core fund, Orion Income Return Partners, with €10 billion of investment capacity, the Orion Funds target a wide range of real estate investments throughout Europe.  

Contact:  Richard Aylwin, 020 7832 6450 / 07966 018252; richard@aylwincom.co.uk

About the City of London Corporation 

The City of London Corporation provides local government and policing services for the financial and commercial heart of Britain, the 'Square Mile'. In addition, the City Corporation has three roles: (1) we support London’s communities by working in partnership with neighbouring boroughs on economic regeneration, education and skills projects. In addition, the City of London Corporation’s charity City Bridge Trust makes grants of more than £15 million annually to charitable projects across London and we also support education with three independent schools, three City Academies, a primary school and the world-renowned Guildhall School of Music and Drama. (2) We also help look after key London heritage and green spaces including Tower Bridge, Museum of London, Barbican Arts Centre, City gardens, Hampstead Heath, Epping Forest, Burnham Beeches, and important ‘commons’ in south London. (3) And we also support and promote the ‘City’ as a world-leading financial and business hub, with outward and inward business delegations, high-profile civic events, research-driven policies all reflecting a long-term approach. See www.cityoflondon.gov.uk for more details.

Contact: Bella Longman, Media Officer, City of London Corporation

Tel: 020 7332 1906 / Mobile: 07809 334 327

Email: bella.longman@cityoflondon.gov.uk

Standard Life Investments Limited is registered in Scotland (SC123321) at 1 George Street, Edinburgh EH2 2LL.

Standard Life Investments Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Standard Life Investments (Hong Kong) Limited is licensed with and regulated by the Securities and Futures Commission in Hong Kong and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Standard Life Investments Limited.

Standard Life Investments Limited (ABN 36 142 665 227) is incorporated in Scotland (No. SC123321) and is exempt from the requirement to hold an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) under paragraph 911A(2)(l) of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (the 'Act') in respect of the provision of financial services as defined in Schedule A of the relief instrument no.10/0264 dated 9 April 2010 issued to Standard Life Investments Limited by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. These financial services are provided only to wholesale clients as defined in subsection 761G(7) of the Act. Standard Life Investments Limited is regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority under the laws of the United Kingdom, which differ from Australian laws.

Standard Life Investments Limited, a company registered in Ireland (904256) 90 St Stephen’s Green Dublin 2 and is authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Standard Life Investments (USA) Limited, registered as an Investment Adviser with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Standard Life Investments Inc., with offices in Calgary, Montréal and Toronto, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Standard Life Investments Limited. Calls may be monitored and/or recorded to protect both you and us and help with our training. 

www.standardlifeinvestments.com

© 2014 Standard Life, images reproduced under licence