Italian investor acquires Mayfair property for EUR 207m

Italy's Sorgente Group has acquired a 22,000 m² mixed-use scheme in the Mayfair district of London for £167 mln (EUR 207 mln), marking the first step in the Rome-based asset manager's expansion in the UK property market.

Global asset manager Aviva Investors sold Queensberry House to Sorgente's closed-end real estate Donatello Fund David.

Queensberry House comprises shops and offices across five floors, topped by two floors with 1,000 m² of residential space. There are also seven lower floors of parking space.

Built in 1990, the building has produced an average annual rental yield of around 5% and is currently fully leased.

Sorgente said the acquisition met its requirement for 'trophy' buildings. The group's portfolio includes the ‘Flatiron Building’ in Manhattan and the Galleria Colonna, recently renamed Galleria Alberto Sordi, in Rome. The group previously owned the Chrysler Building art deco skyscraper in New York.

Managing director Giovanni Maria Benucci of Sorgente commented: 'The acquisition of Queensberry House marks just the start of Sorgente Group's move to become an active investor in the UK commercial property market. Office demand in London remains high and we believe this situation will continue to improve in the years to come as private-sector business activity in particular is rejuvenated in the UK'.

Sorgente Group is also moving to attract investment from UK-based institutions into its range of real estate funds. To support this strategy, a new company -Sorgente UK Limited - has been formed to actively promote the group’s six Luxembourg-registered real estate funds.

In addition to Italy, the UK and Luxembourg, Sorgente is also active in the US and Switzerland. Within the group, total real estate assets owned by the funds and their underlying companies, including managed assets, amount to EUR 4 bn.

Sorgente Group is planning a programme of fundraising activity to boost its assets under management to over EUR 8 bn by 2015.

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