AN Edinburgh-based investment firm has introduced the funding for a £55.2 million deal for a South Korean business to acquire commercial property in Scotland.
Robbie Moir from the Scottish firm, 9 West, secured the funding from Hyundai Asset Management Co. Ltd to purchase prime office space at Gyle Square in Edinburgh.
London-based Greenridge Investment Management sold the 148,796-sq-ft property to Hyundai Asset Management less than three years after acquiring it from Highland Properties, which had developed the offices on the site of the former BAE Systems factory.
Moir, whose business was instrumental in striking the deal, said: “This is a major overseas investment in Edinburgh, which reflects very positively on the level of global interest in the commercial property sector in Scotland.
“This sends out a strong signal that Scotland is on the radar of Asian investors if the right kind of property is available.
“South Korean investment firms in particular are stepping up global real asset investments targeting real estate and infrastructure opportunities.”
Moir says his firm 9 West, which launched earlier this year, aims to “introduce capital to investment opportunities utilising key relationships with investors around the world”.
The business owner has 20 years of experience in financial services, including 12 years of global infrastructure investing, working across London, New York and the Middle East.
Gyle Square is currently leased to NHS National Services Scotland, which provides shared services to the NHS and other public bodies across Scotland.
It has fully occupied the building since its construction in 2003, and is under a lease until June 2029.
Hyundai Asset Management rolled out its first public real estate fund and raised money from individual investors in South Korea to support the acquisition of the property. The fund has a term of three and a half years and will be listed on the Korea Stock Exchange.
The firm borrowed £35.9m, 65% of the acquisition price, in a three-year secured loan from UK-based lenders according to the details of the deal, which closed on Friday.
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