Investcorp buys office building in Washington DC

The Bahrain-listed alternative investment fund Investcorp has paid US$180 million to buy an office building in Washington DC as part of a new strategy to invest in assets in key US cities.

Investcorp said on Monday that its US-based real estate arm had acquired a 170,000 square feet, fully let office building at 733 10th Street in the East End of the US capital as part of a new initiative foc­used on buying good quality long-term assets in key gateway markets.

Investcorp purchased the property with its joint venture partner, ScanlanKemperBard, as part of an attempt to invest in property assets less likely to be hit by volatility in global and local markets.

“We believe 733 10th Street provides long-term resilience to market fluctuations,” said Mohamed Sammakia, managing director at Investcorp for the UAE.

Investcorp said that, despite falls in the global oil price, over the past 12 months its total real estate acquisitions have exceeded US$1.5 billion in gross asset value as Arabian Gulf investors continue to look to diversify their wealth out of the Middle East region.

Since 1996, Investcorp has completed more than 400 property investments with a total value of more than $13bn.

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