The development firm British Land and the investor Blackstone have been working via a joint venture to build 700,000 sqft of offices at 5 Broadgate in central London. Their plans are now set to proceed after UBS committed to occupying the entire property.
Buildings at 4 and 6 Broadgate are currently being demolished, with British Land expecting to see construction of the new office tower established in their place before the end of 2014.
See Flexible Office Operators at Broadgate
“This is another significant milestone in the development of the new UBS building at 5 Broadgate and a real boost for the City,” said Tim Roberts, head of offices at British Land. “The Broadgate estate continues to evolve to serve the needs of a range of city occupiers and the 30,000 people based there.”
The leasehold arrangement agreed between UBS and the joint venture behind the scheme entails the Swiss banking group deferring lease break options on three other office bases in central London and paying £54.50 per square foot.
The terms of the deal also mean the bank will be given an 18-month rent-free occupancy period, and the building will be fitted out according to its specifications.
British Land is among the largest property developers in the UK, with an office space portfolio valued at close to £5 billion. Its buildings are located in either the City of London or the West End, in line with its strategy of focusing purely on “prime assets” in the capital.
UBS has a sizeable presence in the City of London, but the banking group hit the headlines in mid-2012 after it emerged one of its UK-based traders had been engaging in unauthorised activities that led to losses worth over £1 billion.
Editor’s notes: Further details about the development of UBS’s headquarters at Broadgate can be found here.