London’s Gherkin for sale at £650m

The Gherkin, one of London’s most recognisable buildings has been put up for sale by its receivers, with a price tag of about £650m. The property is being marketed by Savills and Deloitte Real Estate and is likely to be one of the most keenly watched London property sales of the year.

In April, the building was put into receivership after lenders to the building appointed receiver Deloitte to end years of defaults. The Gherkin is the most high-profile London property to go into receivership since Canary Wharf was taken over by creditors in 1992 after Paul Reichmann’s Olympic & York Developments said it couldn’t pay interest on its loans.

The 40-storey building, at 30 St. Mary Axe, has become one of London’s best-known landmarks since it opened 10 years ago. The 180-meter (590-foot) tower in the City of London financial district is fully occupied, and tenants include Swiss Re, which developed the Gherkin, and the UK’s Standard Chartered.

(Additional reporting Bloomberg)