UAE's Lunate and Saudi Arabia's Olayan buy 49% stake in Dubai tower ICD Brookfield Place

Agreement marks 'largest' institutional third-party single asset real estate deal in the Emirates

The 53-storey building opened in September 2020 at the Dubai International Financial Centre. Photo: ICD Brookfield

Abu Dhabi-based global alternative investment management company Lunate and Saudi conglomerate Olayan Financing Company have agreed to acquire a 49 per cent stake in Dubai's ICD Brookfield Place.

Upon completion of the deal with its current owners, Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD) and Brookfield Corporation, Lunate, through one of its funds, and Olayan Financing Company will each own a 24.5 per cent in the 53-storey building, which opened in September 2020 at the Dubai International Financial Centre.

ICD and Brookfield will retain a combined 51 per cent equity interest, split equally between the two parties, a statement said on Monday.

No financial details of the agreement were disclosed.

Brookfield Properties will continue to manage the property, which is more than 98 per cent leased at "premium" rents to global financial institutions, law firms and multinational corporations.

The agreement is the largest institutional third-party single asset real estate transaction in the UAE and one of the biggest commercial real estate transactions globally since 2020, the statement said.

Khalid Al Bakhit, chairman, ICD Brookfield said the property "has become a major landmark and the most coveted address in Dubai for businesses and leisure alike".

The transaction comes at a time when Dubai's property market is soaring in value, with favourable interest rates and policies that encourage long-term residency sustaining growth when some thought it might run out of steam.

In 2023, Dubai's real estate transactions jumped by a record 17 per cent annually to 1.6 million deals across segments, data from the Dubai Land Department showed.

Last year, the value of real estate deals in the emirate reached Dh634 billion ($172.6 billion), up 20 per cent annually.

Murtaza Hussain, managing partner at Lunate, said its investment in ICD Brookfield Place is aligned with its "long-term capital strategy to invest in premium assets, delivering attractive yields and capital appreciation".

With $105 billion in assets under management, Lunate was launched by Chimera Investment, an Abu Dhabi-based private organisation, in September last year.

The company, based at the Abu Dhabi Global Market, has interests in private equity, venture capital, private credit, real assets, public equities and public credit markets.

Last week, Lunate acquired a 40 per cent stake in Adnoc Oil Pipelines from BlackRock and KKR.

Nabeel Al Amudi, chief executive, Olayan Financing Company, said the acquisition represents a "strategic" addition to its portfolio and highlights its "commitment to investing in high-quality, sustainable real estate assets".

Olayan Financing Company has a portfolio of more than 32 companies. It invests globally in public equities, private equities, strategic partnerships and real estate assets.

Construction of ICD Brookfield Place began in 2015, with the project costing about $1 billion.

The property has 92,000 square metres of office space, about 15,000 square metres of retail space and 13,000 square metres of green space.

The building is home to large multinational corporations including Ernst & Young, Julius Baer, Latham & Watkins and UBS.

It also hosts The Arts Club of London, one of the world's most famous and luxurious private members' clubs and has several retail outlets and restaurants.