The Qatar Investment Authority is engaged in negotiations with US asset manager Blackrock to buy Asia Square Tower 1 in Singapore. Previously the Norwegian Sovereign Fund and CapitaLand and ARA had expressed an interested in the property.
Asia Square is owned by BlackRock Asia Property Fund III, formerly known as MGPA Asia Fund III. First reported in «The Business Times», the aggregate consideration that Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) would have to pay for 43- storey tower’s 1.2 million square feet of offices and 40,000 square feet of retail space is estimated at S$3.35 billion.
QIA already owns the iconic Raffles Hotel in Singapore through its unit Katara Hospitality.
First Refusal on Tower 2
Blackrock acquired MGPA in 2013, which developed Asia Square on two 99-year leasehold sites acquired at tenders held in 2007. These tenders were held by the Singapore government’s urban land administration arm, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).
QIA successfully acquiring Asia Square Tower 1 is likely to result in them seeking a right of first refusal to acquire the Tower 2, which has 750,000 square feet of office space and 30,000 square feet of retail space.
Other Potential Buyers Failed
Previously, CapitaLand and ARA Asset Management had expressed interest in purchasing the Asia Square property. However, no transactions resulted from the negotiations between BlackRock and the two corporations
