The landmark purchase represents the largest single asset acquisition in mainland Europe in recent years, behind Paris’ Coeur Défense, and the second largest single asset acquisition in mainland Europe ever.
The 142 metre tall Finance Tower is an iconic freehold Grade A building and the largest commercial office premises in Belgium, providing 185,754 sqm of space over 36 floors. Delivering an annualised rent roll of €59 million, the asset is let on a 15 year, indexed linked lease without breaks to the Régie des Bâtiments, a Belgian Government agency on behalf of the Ministries of Finance and Social Security. Circa 4,600 employees are based at the property, which also offers 712 parking spaces, an 850-seat restaurant and a 400-seat conference centre.
Ashurst fielded a cross practice and cross border team led by partner and global head of real estate capital markets David Jones and real estate finance partner Sarah Watkinson, assisted by senior associates Stuart Blacklock, Jonathan Spencer, Francesca Downes and Neil Thomas. The Brussels team was led by partner David Du Pont, assisted by associates Jörg Heirman, Clément Dekemexhe and Yana Paulovich, and supported by real estate finance partner Arnaud Wtterwulghe, senior associate Bram Delmotte and associate Maxime Nuyts.
Shiraz Jiwa, Chief Executive Officer at The Valesco Group, commented:
"This transaction continues our strong commitment to the European market in which we have invested €2 billion in the last 20 months alone and see substantial potential to further deploy capital to deliver value for our institutional and sovereign investors. It has been a real pleasure partnering with Ashurst, David Jones and his team provide us with a first rate and commercially-focussed approach that we value greatly."
David Jones added:
"This landmark and largest single asset purchase in mainland Europe in recent years is a continuation of our market leading European real estate practice and is further testament that Ashurst is the premier firm for advising Korean investors in Europe."
As one of the leading real estate firms globally, Ashurst has unparalleled end-to-end lifecycle capability. The team is known for advising on all aspects of real estate activity including high profile acquisitions and divestments, asset management, large scale development schemes, real estate finance, funds, joint ventures, construction, planning, environment and tax advice.
Over recent years Ashurst has acted on over €8 billion of deals for South Korean real estate investors, including advising Valesco Group, together with AIP Asset Management, on the first South Korean investment into Slovakian real estate with the €120 million acquisition of the newly developed landmark Twin City Tower. The team has developed unrivalled expertise in structuring and implementing these transactions for Korean Investors in the UK and across Continental Europe which has put it at the very forefront of the market.
