Perennial Real Estate venture buys AXA Tower for S$1.2 billion

SINGAPORE — A Perennial Real Estate-led venture has acquired Singapore’s 50-storey AXA Tower for S$1.17 billion and may construct new medical suites at the building, the property firm said today (Jan 30).

The new owners may also sell parts of the 1 million square-foot tower, which is connected via an underground passage to the Tanjong Pagar MRT Station, the company said.

The tower “is an excellent asset with strong upside potential”, Perennial Real Estate Chief Executive Pua Seck Guan said, adding: “The prime asset presents a unique opportunity to maximise and create value for shareholders.”

Rents for the best office buildings in Singapore may have risen as much as 14 per cent in 2014 as more companies sought central office locations, according to property broker Savills. Social media, technology and commodities companies are leasing more space, offsetting cutbacks by investment banks, according to CapitaCommercial Trust Management, which runs the biggest office real estate investment trust in Asia outside Japan.

Perennial Real Estate is a Singapore-based developer, owner and manager of properties, most of which are in China and Singapore. BLOOMBERG