Canary Wharf Group is in talks to buy most of London property rival Capco’s troubled Earl’s Court site, it emerged on Tuesday.
The discussions between Capco and Canary Wharf Group, which is led by Sir George Iacobescu and owned by Qatar Investment Authority and Canada’s Brookfield, are linked to the west London development site where a total of 7500 new homes are planned.
The redevelopment has caused a major headache for Capco. It has suffered from weaker demand for luxury homes owing to stamp duty hikes and Brexit jitters, as well as conflicts with local council Hammersmith & Fulham over housing strategy.
Capco has been exploring a possible demerger of the Earl’s Court division away from its larger Covent Garden estate, as well as a potential outright sale of the huge site.
Previous suitors have included Hong Kong property developer CK Asset Holdings founded by billionaire Li Ka-Shing.
Talks with Canary Wharf, credited with transforming the once derelict Docklands into a world-famous business centre, are at an early stage, according to Bloomberg which revealed the news. All parties declined to comment.
