Ascott and QIA JV buys Islington property
UK: Ascott has added a third property through its joint fund with Qatar Investment Authority.
Ascott will invest £52 million in the 108-unit
north London property which will be renamed Citadines Islington
London.
The property is the US$600 million fund's third investment,
following its maiden acquisitions of two properties in Paris and
Tokyo in November 2015.
The serviced residence will be part of the prime Islington Square,
an integrated development developed by Sager Group, in association
with Cain Hoy. Islington Square will also comprise 263 new homes
and 170,000 square feet of retail and leisure facilities. Citadines
Islington London will offer modern living within a beautifully
restored Edwardian building - the former Royal Mail's sorting
office, where its baroque facade and ornate detailing from more
than a century ago will be preserved.
Lee Chee Koon, Ascott's CEO, said: "Ascott's fund with QIA
provides the financial boost to support our acquisitions and growth
as Ascott gears up to achieve our global target of 80,000 apartment
units by 2020. Making our third acquisition within five months is a
testament to Ascott's strong alignment of interest with our capital
partners. The addition of Citadines Islington London will
strengthen Ascott's position as one of the largest international
serviced residence operators in Europe, with an asset size of over
S$1.5 billion. Our portfolio in the region will increase to more
than 5,300 units in 45 properties across France, United Kingdom,
Belgium, Germany, Georgia and Spain. We aim to double our portfolio
in Europe to 10,000 units by 2020."
Alfred Ong, Ascott's managing director for Europe, said:
"Scheduled to open in 2019, Citadines Islington London is located
within Islington, one of London's prime cultural and culinary hubs,
and home to several influential authors and artists over the
centuries. These include Charles Dickens, Dame Gracie Fields,
George Orwell and Charlie Chaplin. Film-maker Alfred Hitchcock also
began his career at a studio at Islington. Today, the area boasts
boutiques, award-winning restaurants, world-famous theatres and
live music venues. It is very near to the City of London's
financial district, and to Silicon Roundabout, the capital's
world-leading technology business cluster. The area surrounding
Citadines Islington London houses a number of multinational
corporations such as Amazon, Barclays, Facebook, Intel as well as
Google, which bought a site at King's Cross for its £1 billion
headquarters."
In London, Ascott operates close to 1,000 units across seven
properties - Ascott Mayfair, The Cavendish, Citadines Barbican,
Citadines Holborn-Covent Garden, Citadines South Kensington,
Citadines Trafalgar Square and Citadines St Mark's -
Islington.
www.the-ascott.com