Saudi’s Alkhabeer Capital Acquires US Property

Saudi-based investment firm Alkhabeer Capital announced that it had acquired Park Ten Plaza, an office building in Houston, in partnership with USAA Real Estate Company.

Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Developed in 1999, Park Ten Plaza, a three-story class A office building, is located in The Energy Corridor in Houston, which hosts over 300 multinational companies.

The 155,140-square ft building is fully leased to eight tenants and is anchored by two full-floor international space users who occupy 69 per cent of the overall rentable area, a statement said.

Ammar Shata, Alkhabeer’s executive director and CEO said: “Following the successful launch and offering of our Central London residential development private fund, we have partnered with USAA Real Estate Company to complement our business plan with access to quality real estate investment opportunities in the US.

“We strongly believe in the depth of the US real estate market, and our focus in 2013 will be on quality, income-producing assets.”

Founded in 2004, AlKhabeer currently has 10 Islamic funds including six real estate funds, three publicly listed funds and an industrial private equity fund.

It now manages around $500 million in assets, a 17 per cent increase from a year earlier, Henri Chaoul, Alkhabeer’s chief investment strategist, told Reuters earlier this month.

He also said that the firm is seeking to list on the Saudi stock exchange.