EG’s must reads: 29 July-2 August

Here’s a wrap-up of some of the top stories on EG from the past week. As developers continue to turn London’s obsolete office stock into hotels, one investor has lodged plans for two sizeable schemes in the Square Mile at the same time. Integrity International Group has filed separate plans for the redevelopment of Atlas House at 1-7 King Street, EC2, and 6-11 Crescent, EC3.Developer plans double office-to-hotel conversion in Square Mile This week we took a look at the Carpetright stores left without a tenant, what the collapse means for towns and cities across the UK and which landlords have the biggest exposure to the retailer. Together, the Carpetright assets comprise some 2.5m sq ft of floorspace and represent more than £38m of contracted rent.Under the rug: inside the Carpetright collapse Former MWB Group chief executive Richard Balfour-Lynn, joint finance director Jagtar Singh and executive director Richard Aspland-Robinson have all been branded dishonest and deceitful by the Takeover Panel. The panel claims that in 2009 and 2010 Balfour-Lynn, Singh, Aspland-Robinson and an uncle of Balfour-Lynn, Jeffery Eker, acted in concert to buy shares in listed company MWB to push their shareholding above the mandatory takeover trigger point of 29.9% and that the plan was kept secret, with no offer made. The Takeover Panel has ordered that no regulated firm in the UK should agree to act for 10 listed directors. The bans, known as “cold shoulders”, range from one to five years.Former MWB Group directors ‘cold shouldered’ by Takeover Panel London’s office leasing activity is still being held back by the effect of hybrid working patterns, but agents see reasons for optimism in the more resilient parts of the market. Research from Savills found central London’s office leasing activity rose to 2.3m sq ft between April and July, a 9% rise compared to the second quarter of 2023. That left the first-half figure at 4.1m sq ft across 356 transactions, a 3% uplift year-on-year. These figures were, however, 12% below the long-term average and slightly below medium-term expectations, which the agency attributed to the ongoing effect of occupiers offering staff hybrid working options.Financial firms take London office leasing higher Camden Council is close to entering into an agreement with a joint venture between Lateral and Ballymore to bring forward a £500m mixed-use scheme in the borough. The scheme, which sits in the heart of London’s Knowledge Quarter, comprises 3.56 acres across two council-owned sites, namely 120-136 Camley Street and 3-30 Cedar Way, N1. The proposals include construction of around 350 homes, of which around 170 will be genuinely affordable, alongside the delivery of more than 200,000 sq ft of commercial space for the life sciences, technology and digital industries.Camden Council nears deal for £500m Knowledge Quarter scheme With the positive sentiment and energy that comes with a newly elected government, let’s be bolder about London on a world stage once more. This is not the time to be British, writes Jace Tyrrell in this week’s EG Magazine. The Opportunity London chief executive, who has recently returned from a global trip to meet investors and wave the flag for the capital, shares his discoveries and offers key takeaways for attracting international investment.Be less British – it’s time to show off the capital’s jewels Other stories you might have missed: M&A lessons from Rapleys’ managing partnerRenewal’s £1.9bn New Bermondsey masterplan receives approvalRLAM sells Harrogate retail assets for 30% over asking priceNAV no more? Jefferies weighs dropping data from notesIndustry welcomes Rayner making ‘planning policy a priority’‘Supercharged’: SEGRO fires up data centre driveGrowth is key focus for Cushman boss MackayConstruction starts signal return of confidence Photo © Dimitris Legakis/Athena Pictures/Shutterstock