HK’s Chinachem To Complete Acquisition Of Kaleidoscope Office Bldg Soon
UNITED KINGDOM – Hong Kong-based property developer Chinachem Group revealed that it’s poised to complete the purchase of the Kaleidoscope office building in London within 10 days, according to a press release published on Thursday morning (8 September, SGT).
The company is purchasing the office property for £158.5 million, which translates to a capital value of £1,789 psf. The seller is Helical, a real estate investment and development firm focusing on assets located in London.
Located above the Farringdon East Crossrail Station, the office property has a leasehold tenure of 150 years. The leasehold right was granted by Transport for London in 2018 and the commercial property has a head rent pegged to 10 percent of contracted rents.
Completed in 2019, the 6-storey office building has an area of 88,580 sq ft. At present, it’s fully leased by ByteDance’s subsidiary Tiktok, which agreed to lease the commercial property for 15 years starting in March 2021 at £7.6 million per year or over £86 psf.
Designed by PLP, the office building is a recipient of the BREEAM Excellent and WiredScore Platinum certifications. Apart from featuring a 5,000 sq ft roof terrace and spa-quality end-of-journey facilities, it showcases artwork by Dutch artists De Makers Van.
“We were able to attract one of the world’s fastest-growing tech businesses due to its striking design, highly accessible location, excellent amenities, and strong environmental credentials. We will now seek to recycle the proceeds from the sale into delivering new highly sustainable ‘best-in-class’ Central London office schemes, where occupier demand remains strong,” commented Helical’s property director, Matthew Bonning-Snook.
He added that Kaleidoscope was the first completed construction of a development located above a metro station on the Elizabeth Line.
Situated at Lindsey Street, the office property is within proximity to the UK offices of Snapchat and e-commerce giant Amazon.
“We’re delighted to have acquired Kaleidoscope successfully as it is located in a prime position in one of London’s most dynamic, vibrant, and culturally rich sub-markets with impressive rental growth. We intend to hold this property for long-term investment,” added Chinachem’s CEO and Executive Director Donald Choi.
