London firm sells Abu Dhabi bank site for US$26.6m

The developer of the One Hyde Park apartment complex in London’s affluent Knightsbridge sold the last of three retail spaces in the property for more than GBP£17m (US$26.6m). The 2,982 sq ft space currently occupied by Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), was sold to an undisclosed overseas buyer, developer Project Grande said in a statement today. The company said in February that it sought at least GBP£21m. One Hyde Park was developed by a venture between Christian Candy’s CPC Group and Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jasim Bin Jaber al Thani’s closely held Waterknights. Candy conceived the 86-apartment complex with his brother, Nick. Sales of homes valued at more than GBP£1.5bn have been completed there, Project Grande said in February. The retail space is one of three in the building, which is about 980 ft from Harrods department store. Grigory Guselnikov, a Russian entrepreneur, bought the space rented by watchmaker Rolex Group for more than GBP£13m in August, broker Savills said. The space housing a McLaren sports-car dealership sold for more than GBP£11m two months later, two people with knowledge of the deal said at the time. Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, the UAE’s second- biggest Shariah-compliant bank, has 14 years left on its lease for the site, Project Grande said in February. The bank leases the real estate for GBP£800,000, giving its landlord an initial yield of about 4.4 percent at a GBP£17m purchase price. The site was the bank’s first branch in the UK, according to the developer.