Lincoln House, a 50,000 sq ft seaside mansion in Mumbai, has been bought for a whopping 7.5 billion rupees (£73 million) by pharmaceutical billionaire Cyrus Poonawalla in the most expensive residential property deal in India’s history.
Lincoln House, a heritage mansion named after the 16 American president, was home to Mumbai’s US consulate until recently. It was put on the market in 2011 when the consulate relocated to a newer business district.
Mr Poonwalla, who is ranked as the 14 richest man in India, is worth an estimated $8.1 billion, according to Forbes. He is the chairman of the Pune based Serum Institute – the largest producer of drugs for snake bite.
According to the Indian Express he intends to use the two-acre property as a family residence.
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Adar Poonawalla, Mr Poonawalla’s son, who led negotiations over the purchase, told the Financial Times that it was “by far the most expensive” deal for a single residential building in India.
The high profile deal comes only a week after industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla had bought Jatia House, another South Mumbai property for a record 3.9 billion rupees.
Lincoln House was formerly known as the Wankaner House, a palace belonging to the Maharaja of the city of Wankaner.
The aristocrat made a deal with the US government and sold the palace to pay off his taxes following Indian independence in 1947.
A view of the new house of Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Indian energy company Reliance Industries, in Mumbai.
The most expensive building in Mumbai is still Antilia, a purpose-built 27 floor private home owned by Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Indian energy company Reliance Industries. It is estimated to be worth around $1 billion.
