Syrian-born
billionaire Wafic Saïd is set to embark on a $1bn (£800m) global property
investment drive and has earmarked around a third of the total for London
assets.
Saïd
Holdings, the Bermuda-based investment group founded by Saïd in 1987, plans to
invest the money over the next two to three years.
As well
as increasing its investments in London, Saïd Holdings will look to make its
debut acquisitions in Canada and Germany.
“The investment
group is increasing focus on real estate globally, and in three particular
markets: the UK, Canada and Germany,” said a spokesman for the Saïd family.
“We may
also consider France, but only Paris. We’re looking at a total investment of up
to $1bn worldwide, with as much as a third of that in the UK.”
Triple portfolio
The
planned investments will triple the size of Saïd Holdings’ existing property
portfolio. Currently valued at around $500m, its existing assets include 5
Churchill Place in Canary Wharf, which it refinanced in a £137.5m deal earlier this month
with Citi and Bank of Ireland London.
Last
month, Saïd Holdings appointed Robin Broadhurst, the former chairman of the
European division of JLL, to advise the company on expanding its real estate
activities. Saïd Holdings is also advised by Nigel Fox and Ross Davies,
partners at Capital Real Estate.
In the
UK, the group will target ‘core-plus’ investments in City of London fringe
districts such as Whitechapel and Holborn. The search is focused on
multi-tenanted buildings that offer the opportunity for refurbishment or
redevelopment to add value.
In
Germany, the group is looking to buy similar assets in Berlin and Munich, while
its search in Canada will focus on Toronto and Vancouver. The group is weighing
up whether Paris offers the right opportunities and is likely to wait until the
result of the forthcoming elections in France before deciding whether to invest
in the country.
Having
made his fortune in the Saudi Arabian construction industry, Saïd came into the
public eye in the UK for his role in the £40bn Al-Yamamah arms, infrastructure
and oil deals in the 1980s.
In 1982,
Saïd founded the Saïd Foundation, which supports talented scholars and children
in need in the Middle East, and founded the Saïd Business School at Oxford
University.