AustralianSuper has teamed up with their long-standing advisor TH Real Estate to jointly finance One Crown Place in London’s EC2 with a €314.7m (£280m) development facility. AustralianSuper has committed €258.5m (£230m) and TH Real Estate’s recently launched Global Real Estate Debt Partners - Fund II (UK) (GREDP Fund II) is participating with a €56.2m (£50m) commitment.
The mixed-use scheme, developed by Malaysian conglomerate MTD Group, totals 370,500ft² and is comprised of 136,000ft² of office space, 7,000ft² of retail, a 41-bed boutique hotel and 246 luxury residential units. CBRE is acting as Development Manager on behalf of MTD Group.
Henry Robinson, Senior Director, CBRE Development commented: "We are delighted to be working in partnership with AustralianSuper and TH Real Estate for the financing of our flagship development at One Crown Place. The transaction was executed efficiently and knowledgeably by the lenders from start to finish and having the CBRE debt team advise on the funding terms provided us with the necessary flexibility for the requirements of our client."
Mr Tee, Kim Siew, CEO of MTD Group said: "We are very pleased with the outcome of this transaction and the efficient and successful collaboration between multiple stakeholders across the globe. This is a great milestone for us and we are extremely proud of our team that delivered this result to build relationships with our new partners TH Real Estate and AustralianSuper."
Jason Peasley, Head of Mid Risk at AustralianSuper, adds: "The One Crown Place transaction strongly aligns with our real estate debt strategy to target high-quality opportunities secured against institutional assets in top-tier locations in European cities. Expanding our relationship with TH Real Estate – which has an impressive track record in the European debt sector – allows us to partner with a market leading global manager to access high-quality real estate opportunities."
Shawn Kaufman, Director at TH Real Estate, commented: "We are pleased to be at the forefront of the market in providing CBRE and their client with a single financing solution for the One Crown Place development and believe this transaction demonstrates the combined strength of TH Real Estate and AustralianSuper. As part of the now formalised debt mandate, together we are able to implement an investment strategy that is both meaningful and relevant to borrowers in the current environment."
