Skylight (Business Center)

History

2024: The purchase of the Skylight business center cost VK 3.4 billion rubles

At the end of May 2024, it became known that the VK Internet holding bought out the Skylight business center on Leningradskoye Shosse in Moscow, which houses the company's headquarters. The transaction amount amounted to approximately 3.4 billion rubles.

According to CNews, in 2023, VK holding acquired Linder JSC, which owns the Skylight complex through Akhil LLC. The amount of the transaction includes Linder's debt to VK and third parties. It is noted that VK (formerly the Mail.ru Group) agreed to lease Skylight in 2011, and in 2013 the company moved (then the business center belonged to the developer - Hals-Development). Initially, the VK holding rented more than 30 thousand square meters of office space in this complex.

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Freepik

According to the database "Kontur. Focus," JSC "Linder" was created in 2022, and earlier this company was owned by Andrei Tsirik. In turn, Akhil LLC was formed in 2017: initially, Maxim Yasko was the owner of this enterprise. Then the company belonged to the Cypriot offshore companies Lisofaga Trading and Sevastrol, and since 2022 it became the property of Linder JSC.

Skylight is two functionally independent towers with 27 floors (109.2 m), united by a 5-story stylobate section and a crossing at the 20th floor level. These towers are a mirror image of each other with separate entrances. There is a multi-level underground parking for 583 parking spaces. The complex is equipped with a plenum and exhaust ventilation system, a central air conditioning system, smoke ventilation and a sprinkler fire extinguishing system. Fiber optic communications were carried out with a full range of capabilities. Security is ensured by round-the-clock security, access control and video surveillance.^[1]

2023: VK takes over Skylight

The Linder company associated with VK became the owner of the Achilles company, on the balance sheet of which is one of the towers of the Skylight business center on Leningradsky Prospekt in the north of the capital. The deal was closed in March 2023, according to data from the SPARK-Interfax system.

According to Vedomosti, the total area of ​ ​ the 27-story tower purchased by VK is 49,290 square meters. m, but the company itself before this transaction since 2011 rented over 30,000 square meters in Skylight. M. Three years ago, she renegotiated the lease agreement (it expired in 2021) for another five years. Who acted as the seller of this object is not known for sure. The business center itself was built by the Hals-Development development company. But several years ago she sold the VK building to an unnamed buyer, whom market participants associated with the investment company O1 Properties.

VK became the owner of Achilles, on the balance sheet of which is one of the towers of the Skylight business center

According to the newspaper, one of the previous owners of Achilles was Maxim Yasko, a member of the board of directors of O1 Propertis Finance and a former member of the board of directors of Bolshevik JSC. O1 Priorities owns the Bolshevik business center on Leningradsky Prospekt.

A VK spokesman confirmed to the publication information about the deal, but did not disclose details. He added that the purchase of the tower "will provide an opportunity to implement a number of projects to improve working conditions for employees." Denis Platov, director of the Nikoliers capital markets department, estimates the market value of the Skylight tower at 12-13 billion rubles. Similar figures - 12-15 billion rubles - leads the head of the Department of Capital Markets and Investments IBC Real Estate Mikael Ghazaryan. In addition, as indicated in the Vedomosti article of April 17, 2023, the purchase of the Skylight tower is the largest transaction in the office market since the beginning of 2023.^[2]

2021: VTB Capital Investment bought part of the Mail.ru Group office in SkyLight

On May 24, 2021, it became known that VTB Capital Investment, in the interests of investors in the closed mutual investment fund of real estate (ZPIFN) VTB Capital - Rental Income, bought 5.5 floors in the SkyLight business center on Leningradsky Prospekt in Moscow.

According to the press service, the VTB subject of the deal was almost 6.2 thousand square meters of office space in Tower B and 68 parking spaces in an underground parking lot. More than 80% of office premises are rented Mail.ru Group by a taxi ordering service included in the group. Citymobil

According to Vedomosti, information about the transaction is indicated in the report on the assessment of these areas, compiled for the fund by the consulting company Cushman & Wakefield. The document is posted on the official website of VTB Capital Pension Reserve. It says that the market value of the premises is 2.3 billion rubles.

VTB Capital Investments bought part of the Mail.ru Group office on Leningradsky Prospekt

A representative of VTB, in a conversation with the publication, explained the purchase of premises in SkyLight by the high quality of the building, its good location in one of the most active business districts in Moscow, as well as the presence of reliable tenants.

The transaction is expected to diversify the fund's assets into prospective real estate segments and thereby increase its attractiveness to investors. The expected target return on the fund is 10% per annum.

The purchase was a logical continuation of the development and balancing of the fund. Together with previously acquired warehouse buildings, investors now receive not only participation in high-class facilities, but also unique diversification in promising real estate segments, - said Alexey Streletsky, investment director of VTB Capital Investments.

The Skylight office center with a total area of ​ ​ 110 thousand square meters consists of two towers, one of them - a rental area of ​ ​ about 30 thousand square meters - is occupied by the Mail.ru Group. The facility is located on Leningradsky Prospekt, next to the Airport metro station^[3]

2020: GC "Hals" sold the tower "A" of the SkyLight business center

At the end of December 2020, the Hals group announced the sale of Tower A of the SkyLight business center, which was fully leased to the Mail.ru Group until April 2026 (this building houses the headquarters of the Internet holding).

We see high interest among investors in buying premium office space as a ready-made rental business. Today we are pleased to announce that the sale of the SkyLight Tower "A" BC, a fully implemented premium-level office building, has ended. For the new owner, the deal became an investment, - said the president of Hals-Development Viktor Adamov.

GC "Hals" sold the tower "A" of the SkyLight business center, which until April 2026 was fully leased to Mail.ru Group

The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The buyer of part of the business center is also unknown. According to RIA Real Estate, citing its own sources, the buyer of the asset could be the structure of O1 Properties, one of the largest owners of class "A" offices in Moscow. The O1 did not confirm the information to the agency, noting that the company only acted as a fee agent in the framework of the transaction, which was held in the interests of a group of private non-professional investors not related to the company or its shareholders.

The O1 Properties team searched for an investment attractive object, conducted its due diligence, technical audit, raising primary funding, and legal structuring of the transaction. The next step will be to prepare the project for packaging at ZPIF and transfer it to the management of a professional management company, - a representative of O1 told the publication.

SkyLight Business Center is two 27-story skyscrapers, A and B, mirrored in relation to each other on Leningradsky Prospekt in Moscow. The total area of ​ ​ the sold tower "A" is almost 50 thousand square meters. m, including 30,487 square meters. m of rentable area, with underground parking for 453 parking spaces.^[4]

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