OSLO: Norway’s sovereign wealth fund is among bidders for BlackRock Inc.’s Asia Square Tower 1, an office building in Singapore’s central business district, according to people familiar with the matter.
CapitaLand Ltd., Singapore’s largest developer, and Keppel Land Ltd. have also made offers for the property, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the process is private. The office tower could be valued at more than S$3.5 billion ($2.5 billion), according to the people.
The agreement for Asia Square Tower 1 could be reached over the next 60 days, one of the people said. The Singapore dollar rose almost 1 percent against the U.S. dollar as of 5:59 p.m. local time on Tuesday, the biggest gain since March 23.
BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, said earlier this year that it has received expressions of interest for Asia Square Tower 1 and could get more than S$4 billion for the building whose tenants include Citigroup Inc. BlackRock may also look to sell Asia Square Tower 2, Greg Lapham, a real estate managing director at the firm, said in June.
The two towers together are worth S$7 billion, Lapham said at the time, and the sale could be a club deal — in which several investors bid together — or could attract investors such as sovereign wealth or pension funds.
Thomas Sevang, a spokesman for Norway’s wealth fund, declined to comment. As part of CapitaLand’s normal course of business, the company evaluates and seeks accretive acquisitions, the developer said in an e-mailed response to queries. Keppel did not immediately return requests for comment.
