UAE ADFG acquires USD578.9m London police HQ

10 Dec 2014

(MENAFN) The London Police said that they have sold their New Scotland Yard headquarters for USD578.90 million to Abu Dhabi Financial Group, as part of a plan by the London Police to cut its spending, which resulted in them relocating to a smaller site, The Peninsula Qatar reported.

London’s police authority said that they will use the funds to help balance its budget and invest some of the proceeds into equipping officers with body cameras and tablets as well as investing in buildings and computer systems.

Abu Dhabi Financial Group said that it has paid USD187.87 million above the asked price of USD391.41 million which the police asked for and that it plans to turn the central London location into a development including luxury apartments.

“The New Scotland Yard site will be one of the most important redevelopment projects undertaken in Central London this decade, replacing a world famous headquarters with a world class development,” Abu Dhabi Financial Group CEO said.

This is the latest landmark to be bought by foreign investors in London, after they turned their attention to the city, resulting in a Brazilian-Lebanese billionaire buying one of the city’s most famous modern landmarks, the Gherkin office tower, as well as Qatari investors making a bid for Canary Wharf, London’s eastern financial district.