Dutch real estate developer, Breevast, and investor, ZBG Group of Companies, have sold the Brussels Finance Tower for over €1.2 billion, it was announced on Monday.
Bought by the South Korean investment group Meritz Securities and its London-based investment and asset manager Valesco Group, the transaction represents the largest single property deal ever to be completed in Belgium- meaning it is the largest transaction in which ownership does not exceed one dwelling.
Constructed in 1982, Breevast and ZBG Group of Companies (ZBG) owned the tower since 2001, when the real estate developer bought the building from the federal government for a total of €311 million. A renovation, including asbestos removal, amounting to a cost of €325 million followed.
For Breevast and ZBG, the sale of the Brussels Finance Tower, which holds some 200,000 square meters of office space, represents the final chapter of an extensive urban redevelopment plan, as well as a new life cycle for the landmark building in Brussels that began over 18 years ago.
"We are pleased to hand over this high-quality asset to its new owners. This project, together with the adjacent state administrative centre Belair sites, was a long-term commitment to the future of Brussels," Alexander Villaverde, a member of the ZBG Management Board, explained in a statement.
The Tower plays host to the Federal Public Service Finance government agency, social security officers and some smaller governmental services.
Reaching a height of 144 meters, the Brussels Finance Tower is one of the tallest buildings in Belgium.
Evie McCullough
The Brussels Times
