Lord Norman Foster, the Pritzker Prize-winning architect, has sold a minority stake in his London-based firm, Foster & Partners, to 3i Group Plc to fund the company's expansion in China, the Middle East and Russia. Foster announced the sale to Europe's largest publicly traded buyout firm last week in a video interview posted on his firm's website, Bloomberg reported. The financial details were not revealed.
Lord Norman Foster, the Pritzker Prize-winning architect, has sold a minority stake in his London-based firm, Foster & Partners, to 3i Group Plc to fund the company's expansion in China, the Middle East and Russia. Foster announced the sale to Europe's largest publicly traded buyout firm last week in a video interview posted on his firm's website, Bloomberg reported. The financial details were not revealed.
Foster, whose firm's works include the iconic HSBC tower in Hong Kong, the Millau Viaduct in France and 'The Gherkin' skyscraper in London, celebrates his 72nd birthday next month and is preparing the company for his retirement. While he will remain the majority shareholder, Foster also named Mouzhan Majidi as chief executive officer to oversee the operational side of the business.
Foster won the Pritzker Prize, considered the top award in architecture, in 1999, nine years after he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. His designs have made him one of a group of globe-trotting architects alongside Frank Gehry, Rem Koolhaas, Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers, who are in demand for new building projects, Bloomberg said.
