Ben Taylor

Ben's experience includes advising:

• A leading Asian investor on its acquisition of the City of London police station on Wood Lane, with a view to its redevelopment as a boutique hotel.
• A family office on the acquisition of a retail led development in Chelsea and on the prospective development of the site.
• A major asset manager on their agreement to establish a newly constructed, purpose-built European headquarters in Mayfair.
• One of the world’s largest private equity houses on the multi billion pound acquisition of Bourne Leisure, including the real estate aspects of the required financing by the client’s debt funds and Starwood Capital. Later acted on the sale of the Butlins division of the company back to the Harris family, one of the original sellers.
• Notable experience in sales and leasebacks and ground rent deals, including the sale and leaseback of caravan parks to Standard Life, the GBP300m sale and leaseback of Butlins to USS and the sale and leaseback of 25 Asda stores to a US REIT. The latter was one of the largest deals in the market in 2023.
• A major investor in student accommodation on their GBP969m consortium bid with APG to buy FTSE-250-listed GCP Student Living.
• A leading investor in the London market on their major disposals of Alban Gate, 125 London Wall to King Street Real Estate GP and Arax Properties in 2020; and Times Square, Queen Victoria Street to Italian insurance company Generali in 2021.
• A major asset manager acting on behalf of Asian capital, on the acquisition of 5 Broadgate, the London headquarters of UBS. This was the second largest single asset transaction ever seen in the London market.