The property firm founded by the late Greek-Cypriot billionaire Christos Lazari — who came to Britain with £20 in his pocket — has seen the value of its London empire swell to £3 billion.
Lazari Investments’ portfolio of offices, shops and hotels in the West End and north London, rose 2.2% in the year to March, new accounts show.
The landlord is led and owned by Christos Lazari’s three children after their father died in 2015. The Lazari family are worth £2 billion, according to the Sunday Times Rich List.
The firm agreed a number of new office lettings in the period, including to Asos, CBRE and NHS Property Services. That helped rental income rise 9% to £115.5 million.
Its report said: “The London office market has remained surprisingly resilient despite political headwinds.”
It added: “Demand for central London offices remains active and we have been able to outperform the market with our various development and asset management activities.”
Pre-tax profits tumbled 40% to £80.7 million, but that was due to smaller rises in property values than in previous years. Stripping out valuation movements, underlying pretax profits rose 45% to £52.5 million.
The family also holds development and financing arms.
