The multi-million pound bridging loan was for the acquisition of 1 Palace Street; a Grade II listed 19th century former hotel building on Buckingham Gate by Palace Revive Limited, a special purpose vehicle established to acquire the property.
Palace Revive Limited exchanged contracts in September 2013 and has now completed on the purchase of the property – a 245,000 sq ft site which will be redeveloped into 78 luxury private apartments with a restaurant, health centre and unrivalled views over Buckingham Palace Gardens.
Palace Revive Limited has appointed London developer Northacre as the development manager for the 1 Palace Street project.
Omni Capital provided credit approval within 48 hours and ahead of exchange and the 12 month term loan is thought to be one of the largest ever bridging loans underwritten by a specialist UK lender.
The new scheme, which has received planning permission, will involve the part refurbishment and part demolition of the existing listed building and apartment sizes will range from 800 sq ft to over 5,000 sq ft.
Colin Sanders, chief executive officer of Omni Capital, said: “This marks the first of many transactions as Omni Capital starts 2014 and moves into larger ticket deals.
“Extensive knowledge and expertise in all aspects of property and development, especially on deals of this size, combined with Omni’s financial structuring capabilities, enables fast and substantial in-house development funding for experienced investors and development professionals.”
In addition to the £127.5m loan, Omni Capital has lent over £250m over the past 18 months. The company also expanded its financial services brand into the retail sector last year following the acquisition of a point-of-sale customer credit facilities provider to independent and niche retailers.
Omni Capital also confirmed that it will shortly announce a number of new staff appointments and details of an impending office move.
