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£929m buildings in sell-off of tycoon Halabi's fallen empire
Ross Lydall21.10.09
Some of the most expensive office blocks in London are to be sold off to recover debts from the collapsed empire of property tycoon Simon Halabi.
The High Court has appointed accountancy firm Ernst & Young as administrator to off-load the six buildings, including the Aviva Tower in the City and JP Morgan's offices at 60 Victoria Embankment, which fell into negative equity.
It is the latest stage in the saga of Syrian-born Mr Halabi, 59, who has fallen victim to the credit crunch. Two years ago the financier and former owner of gym chain Esporta was the 14th wealthiest person in Britain and worth £3billion on the Sunday Times Rich List. He did not feature on the most recent list. This month the Standard revealed that six of his central London homes, unoccupied for years despite each being worth up to £20million, were at risk of being seized by Westminster council to protect them from squatting.
The six commercial properties believed to be owned by Mr Halabi through a Byzantine network of companies are part of a portfolio of nine now worth about £929million. They had been used as security on a £1.15billion loan.
Ernst & Young has three years to sell the properties but experts believe deals will be done sooner.
David Martin, of property services adviser CBRE, told The Times that "now is as good a time as ever" to sell the properties.
The other four are Millennium Bridge House, New Court, in Carey Street, Ludgate House on Bankside and Leadenhall Court in the City.
Reader views (8)
He is just another big victim of the credit crunch... loan to value refinancing over expansion in the good years... dependence on property appreciation than cash flow to service debts
- Jack, LONDON
He's not looking for pity but both the comments below show the petty jealousy that exists in the Uk for anyone with wealth.
- Andrew, St. John's Wood, London
If you borrow billions from anyone, including banks and building societies, you become a billionaire on paper overnight; but this doesn't mean you have a single penny in your pocket, that is your own.
There was a film made donkeys years ago called the Million Pound Note; and everyone thinking Gregory Peck was a Millionaire, bent over backwards to give him unlimited credit, until they became worried that he never had the Million Pound Note etc; then they all wanted their money back, then he found the Million Pound Note again; and the merry-go-round started all over again.
Business, Banking, and Stock Markets are like that; if you have the cash, or the illusion of cash; they lend you lots more, if you have nothing, they lend you nothing.
You will find that poor people owe less in debts; than the richest people owe in debts.
Its called the Illusion of Capitalism to the wealthy; and the reality of Capitalism to the poor.
Have fun after the next election; that is when the payback of Capitalist illusions will start, and the wealthy will continue to get even wealthier on your poor backs.
- Mickinlondon, london
I lived in Damascus for about six months. No British person was allowed to own any property there. Shouldn't we insist on reciprocal rights when foreigners buy property here?
- Fred, Horsham
'... Mr Halabi, 59, who has fallen victim to the credit crunch. Two years ago the financier and former owner of gym chain Esporta was the 14th wealthiest person in Britain and worth £3billion...'
There's something wrong with our definitions here: he just had a better credit line than the rest of us, that's all, and owed more than he owned.
A while back I saw Trump hailed as a billion-dollar property genius at a time when the same article noted that his debts were 1.3 billion. This isn't to say that Mr Trump's credit wasn't good then or now, but I wondered
what sort of super-genius it made me, a white van man with a couple of thousand of my own real cash in the bank.
- Mdj E10, london uk
Sorry with a portfolio like that, he wasn't a true victim of the credit crunch...he was just very greedy!!
- Jackie, London
He wasn't that good a business man really then was he.
He caused his own downfall through pure greed, nothing less.
- P Staker, London
Isn't it sad and guess what banks lent hime the money - boo hoo boo hoo.
- Fred, London
