Banco Santander, the world’s ninth largest bank by revenue, has been outbid by London based Reuben brothers in its attempt to repurchase its headquarters. This acquisition marks David and Simon Reuben’s first acquisition in the Spanish market.
The property has been sold for €3,023 million to Reuben Brothers-backed Sorlinda Investments through an auction organized by a Madrid court. The current rent is in the region of €120 million per annum updated annually.
In 2008, Santander sold its global HQ for 1.9 billion euros to Marme Inversiones 2007 SAL, a special purpose vehicle incorporated by investors Glenn Maud and Derek Quinlan. These financiers, who had also acquired Citi’s headquarters in London, financed the purchase with a syndicated loan – the main lender being RBS.
In the midst of the great recession, on the expiration of the loans in September 2013, Marme defaulted on their repayments and entered liquidation two years later. The financiers, including RBS, Caixabank, ING, Nordbank and BayernLB, have managed to recover their money with interest thanks to the sale.