Manulife Buys HK Office Tower

Manulife (International) Limited, a member of the Manulife group of companies, announced that it had completed the purchase of a new 21-story office building in Hong Kong's new Central Business District. The tower, dubbed the Manulife Tower, was developed by Wheelock Properties, the subsidiary of Wheelock and Company Limited of Hong Kong. Wheelock and Manulife signed a sale-and-purchase agreement in 2013 for HK$4.5 billion, which marked the largest single office tower purchase in Kowloon.

"We are very pleased to see the completion of the purchase of Manulife Tower, which is our brand new flagship building in Hong Kong," said Roy Gori, President and CEO at Manulife Asia. "Nestled in the heart of Hong Kong's new premier Central Business District, our investment in Manulife Tower is a testament to our long-term commitment to the region and Hong Kong where our regional hub is based. Manulife Tower also provides us the flexibility to meet the needs of our business growth in Asia."

Located at 83 Hoi Bun Road, Kowloon East, the Manulife Tower will serve as the office of some of the company's regional and Hong Kong operations, and also the majority of its agency offices. Other Manulife offices continue to be located in Causeway Bay and Kwun Tong. Manulife is expected to take occupancy of Manulife Tower by end of 2015.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Partners.

Citigroup Buys $700M Hong Kong HQ

In what's been reported as the largest single-block office purchase in Hong Kong, Citigroup has committed to pay HK$5.425 billion (or $700 million US) for a twenty-one story building to be completed next year. Wheelock Properties developed and sold One Bay East at 83 Hoi Bun Road, Kowloon East to Citi; full terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed. CBRE Group Inc. acted as adviser on the sale. The purchase price marks a 20% appreciation as compared to the price of the property's twin West Tower, adjacent to the East Tower, which was sold for HK$4.5 billion to Canada-based insurer Manulife last April, according to a report from The Standard.

"We are delighted that two leading global financial corporations have chosen One Bay East as the strategic base for their business operations. The significant and long term investments by top class multinationals show their continual deep confidence in Hong Kong," said Steward Leung, Chairman of Wheelock Properties.

"Our decision to purchase the East Tower of One Bay East underlines our belief and confidence in Hong Kong's continued growth as a leading global financial center and hub for some of our core regional businesses," Stephen Bird, chief executive officer for Citi in Asia Pacific said in a statement.

The 512,000 square foot tower will serve as the Asian headquarters building for Citi in the Asian financial hub. The building is about 40 minutes via public transportation from the main business district in Kowloon, Hong Kong, known as Central, where Citibank Plaza and many of the bank's executives are now located.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.