Landlord Derwent London today announced it has sold the Copyright Building in Fitzrovia to Union Investment Real Estate in a £165m deal.The building, at 30 Berners Street in central London, is still under construction.Derwent has signed up Capita Business Services as a tenant for the building's entire office space, which spans 87,150 sq ft. It also has three retail units totalling 20,000 sq ft which are currently vacant.
FTSE 250-listed Derwent London owns a portfolio of commercial real estate predominantly in central London valued at £5bn.CBRE and Strutt & Parker acted for Derwent London and JLL acted for Union Investment.John Burns, chief executive officer of Derwent London, said: “The disposal of the Copyright Building to this established international investor endorses the strength of the central London office investment market. Derwent London has over a third of its portfolio in Fitzrovia including its major 80 Charlotte Street development where we recently pre-let 42 per cent of the office space.”Martin Schellein, head of investment management Europe of Union Investment, said:
"Fitzrovia is currently one of the most dynamic areas of London’s West End. Once completed, the Copyright building will be one of the district’s highest-value office complexes and is let on a long-term basis to an office tenant with an excellent credit rating.As a result, this core investment is in line with the defensive strategy for expanding our portfolio in the UK and demonstrates that we are still pursuing attractive investment opportunities in the current market cycle."