LONDON, October 1, 2012 – King & Spalding’s London office closed a £100m Shari'ah-compliant financing to help fund the redevelopment of King’s Reach Tower in London.
King & Spalding represented Saudi Arabia-based Mohammed Al Subeaei & Sons Investment Company (MASIC) on the transaction after a referral from the firm’s Dubai office. MASIC agreed to provide the murabaha facility to King’s Reach Estates Limited (KRE), with the funds being used towards the redevelopment of the King’s Reach Tower on London's South Bank.
The tower is to be redeveloped to provide 369,388 sqft of contemporary office space as well as mixed residential and retail space.
The instruction involved lawyers from King & Spalding’s finance, real estate and tax departments in London. The team was led by Islamic finance partner Mike Rainey and associate Asal Saghari. The transaction also brought in the firm’s new English law real estate team, including partner Nigel Heilpern and associate Leo Wilson, who both joined King & Spalding in July 2012 from Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson. London partner Kevin Conway provided tax advice, with corporate and Saudi law aspects handled by partner Benjamin Newland in Dubai and independent counsel Mohammad Al Ammar in Riyadh.
Rainey commented: “This is a fantastic instruction that illustrates the strength and depth of King & Spalding’s international practice. We have a strong client base in the Middle East and, as Gulf investors remain very active in the UK real estate market, we were able to utilise both our local Islamic finance expertise and our new real estate capacity in London to great effect.”
About King & Spalding
Celebrating more than 125 years of service, King & Spalding is an international law firm that represents a broad array of clients, including half of the Fortune Global 100, with 800 lawyers in 17 offices in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The firm has handled matters in over 160 countries on six continents and is consistently recognized for the results it obtains, uncompromising commitment to quality and dedication to understanding the business and culture of its clients. More information is available at www.kslaw.com.
About MASIC
Mohammed Al Subeaei & Sons Investment Company (MASIC) is an institutional investor established in 1933 based out of Riyadh Saudi-Arabia. MASIC's involvement as the largest financier to the scheme marks its entry into the UK market.
