Contributors
Womble Bond Dickinson (WBD) has advised the management shareholders of North East industrial estates owner UK Land Estates on the majority investment by one of the world's largest property investors, GIC.
The Singaporean sovereign wealth fund completed the £425m purchase last week and in doing so will take a majority stake in the commercial property landlord and developer, which counts Team Valley as its flagship estate.
A team from the firm's Corporate Finance department in Newcastle, led by Simon Watts and David Ridley, worked with the management team from UK Land Estates on the deal, which sees US-based investor Northwood exit the region's leading commercial property specialist.
Commenting on the deal, Simon Watts said:
"We're thrilled to have advised longstanding client UK Land Estates on this exciting development for the business, which will support the growth of the company in the North East. The deal represents a significant vote of confidence in the region's property market and it has been a pleasure working with the team at UK Land Estates to make it happen."
GIC's acquisition of UK Land Estates follows other recent investment in the UK and Europe and UK Land Estates itself has continued to invest in recent months, most recently with work underway on a £4.5m industrial scheme at Tyne Tunnel Trading Estate which will provide 4,485 sqm of space for a range of occupiers.
Managing Director of UK Land Estates, Keith Taylor, added:
"We're very grateful to Simon, David and the rest of the WBD team for all their hard work and commitment to this project. Their ability to advise us on the many complex issues in this transaction in an approachable and straightforward manner throughout was incredibly helpful - it gave us confidence that we were entering into a deal that was right for us and one which signals a bright future for the region's property market."
Ranking in the UK's top 20, WBD is a transatlantic law which supports clients with their regional, national and international growth strategies. The firm has a large corporate practice in the UK advising clients on a broad range of corporate transactions, particularly M&A, private equity investments, IPOs, MBOs and joint ventures.
