Korean Financial Firm Nabs $100M for 400 Madison Avenue Purchase
By Mack Burke October 31, 2018 2:02 pm
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Korean financial services firm Daishin Securities nabbed $100 million from Midland National Life Insurance Company to facilitate its $194.5 million purchase of 400 Madison Avenue, which closed on Oct. 24, according to records filed with the New York City Department of Finance.
The $100 million package replaced $51 million in previous debt from J.P. Morgan Chase that was supplied to the building’s seller, ASB Real Estate Investments, in 2015, and it provided an additional $49 million gap mortgage to Daishin. The financing closed in conjunction with the sale on Oct. 24, which was negotiated by Meridian Capital Group.
“400 Madison Avenue presented a rare opportunity to control an entire block-front along one of Manhattan’s preeminent office and retail corridors,” Helen Hwang, a senior executive managing director and head of Meridian’s institutional investment sales team, said at the time of the sale. “The significant investment and interest in the area as a result of the Midtown East Rezoning—most notably the recent commitment to the area by [J.P Morgan Chase]—is a testament to what the future holds for this location and asset.”
Built in 1929, the 21-story, roughly 180,000-square-foot property is located between East 47th and 48th Streets and includes 6,800 square feet of ground-floor retail space.
ASB Real Estate, a division of ASB Capital Management, purchased the property for $139.4 million from the William Macklowe Company in 2012 and moved to refurbish the building.
Upon acquiring the building, ASB improved the facade and its common areas, including refurbishing the lobby and conference center and adding a new tenant lounge in order to provide a “club-like” appeal, according to Hwang.
The property is currently 95 percent leased by 40 tenants, including Knotel, which has leased 25,500 square feet across the third, fourth and seventh floors as well as CitiBank, Kamakura and Bluestone Lane coffee at the ground level, according to information from CoStar Group.
“We took the opportunity to harvest the investment after successfully enhancing the building through our value-add strategy and taking advantage of buyer interest in securing a core asset in a prime Midtown location,” Brodie Ruland, an ASB senior vice president, said in a press release at the time the Daishin sale was announced.
Officials at both Midland and Daishin could not be reached.
