Heron Plaza sold to Singapore investor

The owner of Heron Plaza in London, Heron International, has sold part of the site to an investor from Singapore: UOL Group Limited. The seller has in the last 50 years developed at least 156 buildings throughout the world, and its owner, Gerald Ronson has stated that the time was right to sell this particular London site, given the international interest in it, and in London commercial property in general. 

The sale price of the Four Seasons hotel development is £97 million, and the site has had planning permission in place since 2011 for a 43-storey tower with over half a million square feet of space to include a luxury 5-star hotel, with top-class facilities, as well as retail space and residential apartments. 

Heron International is selling the site, at the heart of the Square Mile in the Bishopsgate area, after 15 years of ownership, although the sale has been two years coming. The company had originally instructed property agent Savills to sell the property in 2012, with an asking price of around £105 million. 

The buyer UOL is behind the worldwide Pan Pacific hotel brand, and is involved with over 30 hotels, amounting to 9,600 rooms, across Asia, North America and Oceania, either in terms of ownership, management or marketing. The Singapore company also has the Parkroyal brand in addition to the Pan Pacific brand, with the latter being expected to be used for the London acquisition. The Heron Plaza deal marks the first for UOL in London.

This news was brought to you by Morgan Pryce, a specialist tenant acquisition agent with offices in Oxford Circus and the City. Morgan Pryce specialises in search, negotiation and project management and works exclusively for tenants.