New York (HedgeCo.Net) – The Willis Tower, built as and still commonly referred to as Sears Tower has been bought by hedge fund giant Blackstone for $1.3 billion, according to early reports. Further terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Blackstone Real Estate Partners VII agreed to acquire Chicago’s Willis Tower, a 3.8 million square-foot office building in downtown Chicago and, at 110 stories, is the second-tallest office building in the United States and the fifth-tallest office building in the world.
“We are delighted to be acquiring this iconic building on behalf of our limited partners.”Jacob Werner, a Managing Director in Blackstone’s real estate group, said, ‘We are bullish on Chicago as companies expand within and move into the city and look for first-class office space. Moreover, we see great potential in further improving both the building’s retail operations and the tourist experience for one of the most popular destinations for visitors to Chicago.””
A representative of 233 South Wacker LLC said in a statement, “This is simply a unique asset in real estate in the United States and has been an excellent investment for us. We are very happy that Blackstone is buying it and know that they will continue to be an excellent steward of this world-famous building.”
Willis Tower remains the second tallest building in the Americas (after One World Trade Center) and the Western Hemisphere. With a pinnacle height of 1,729 feet (527 m), it is the third tallest freestanding structure in the Americas, as it is 86 feet (26 m) shorter than Toronto’s CN Tower. Willis Tower is the eighth-tallest freestanding structure in the world by pinnacle height.
Blackstone is a global leader in real estate investing. Blackstone’s real estate business was founded in 1991 and has approximately $81 billion in investor capital under management. Blackstone’s real estate portfolio includes hotel, office, retail, industrial and residential properties in the US, Europe, Asia and Latin America. Major holdings include Hilton Worldwide, Invitation Homes (single family homes), Logicor (pan-European logistics), SCP (Chinese shopping malls), and prime office buildings in the world’s major cities. Blackstone real estate also operates one of the leading real estate finance platforms, including management of the publicly traded Blackstone Mortgage Trust.
Alex Akesson
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