The Embassy of Italy has quietly bought 4-5 Buckingham Gate in London from Sidra Capital for £45 million in an owner-occupier acquisition.
Sidra bought the asset in 2021 to refurbish the property to a Cat A office space for an unknown sum. The Grade II-listed 21,425-square-foot office is arranged over the lower ground, ground and four upper floors and located on an 0.83-acre plot Victoria. It was refurbished in 2023 and provides bicycle parking, locker and shower facilities, air conditioning, passenger lifts and LED lighting. At the time of sale, the property was vacant.
Planning has been submitted by CBRE on behalf of the Embassy of Italy in London as well as the Italian Institute for Culture and Italian Trade Agency for change of use from an office to an Embassy (sui generis) in September 2024. The property is defined in the application as Sovereign Territory.
It is not known if the Embassy is to vacate its location at 4 Grosvenor Square, a site it has occupied under a 200-year long leasehold since 5 March 1931.
JLL advised Sydra.