Macquarie Capital Principal Finance has arranged and executed a £106.2 mln (€122 mln) senior loan to Aerium Finance (Aerium) to refinance the Herbal House mixed-use asset in central London.
The three-year facility will be funded using capital from Macquarie’s balance sheet. Herbal House is a ten-floor freehold multi-let office and residential building in the heart of Farringdon, central London, totalling 115,000 sq ft (10,685 m2).
The iconic building represents a historic piece of architecture in London, originally constructed in the 1920’s as the printing headquarters for the Daily Mirror, it was purchased by the current owner in 2012 for £26 mln. The building underwent a significant refurbishment programme in 2017 where it was expanded and brought up to grade A standard before being let out to its current tenants.
Alexi Antolovich, global co-head real estate, Macquarie Capital Principal Finance said: ‘The landscape for commercial real estate has changed dramatically over the past year. We’re seeing increased demand from sponsors seeking re-capitalisation of high-quality assets in their portfolios and Macquarie is able to support by offering certainty and fast execution. We are pleased to support Aerium with a re-capitalisation of Herbal House after an extremely successful execution of their long-term business plan to refurbish and re-let the property.’
The investment in Herbal House follows the team’s joint venture with Sun Hung Kai & Co and DPK Quay, to acquire London’s 17 Columbus Courtyard from CWT International Limited for around £110 mln in December 2019, and the sale of London’s Tavis House at the end of 2020 to HIG Capital for £33.1 mln.
