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Songbird asset disposal raises £795m

Proceeds from Songbird's near £800m disposal will be used to pay down debt and to help finance the Canary Wharf property group's huge development pipeline.
June 25, 2014

Songbird Estates (SBD) subsidiary Canary Wharf Group (CWG) has sold the 1m square foot Upper Bank Street building in Canary Wharf to a Separate Limited Partnership (SLP) for £795m. Significantly, the partnership includes a maiden investment by China Life Insurance, which will take a 70 per cent interest through one of its subsidiaries. In the same way, a further 20 per cent has been acquired by Qatar Holding, which holds a 29 per cent stake in Songbird, while the remaining 10 per cent has been acquired by two of CWG’s wholly owned subsidiaries. CWG will be both the asset manager on behalf of the SLP and will also act as general partner through its subsidiaries’ holdings.

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This was Canary Wharf's first major asset sale in nearly a decade, and the company indicated that further disposals are possible, assuming the price is right. The proceeds will be used to pay down debt and free up financing capacity needed to develop its vast 11m square feet development pipeline.