Law firm Foot Anstey’s Bristol-based Islamic finance team has continued its growth in the commercial property sector by advising on another major deal.
Its support for Riyad Bank’s London branch on the refinancing of health and beauty retail group Superdrug’s £21.5m corporate headquarters is the second such deal for the bank it has worked on in recent months and follows the £17.5m refinancing of a Grade A office asset in July 2021. 
The team also handled a similar deal last month for a Saudi-based investment management firm on its £43.6m acquisition of a major head office building occupied by a subsidiary drinks giant Coca-Cola.
And last May it helped complete the £19m acquisition of a 39,000 sq ft grade A office building in Brentwood, Essex, fully let to housebuilding and urban regeneration company Countryside.
The latest transaction for Riyad Bank involved the refinancing of Superdrug’s 55,000 sq ft HQ in Croydon, which features a wellness clinic and nail bar.
The team, which included partner Zahir Nayani, and associates Kate Heard and Leena Payyappilly, lead on the real estate, banking and Islamic finance elements of the transaction, supported by Guernsey-based Collas Crill on the offshore elements.
Riyad Bank is one of the largest financial institutions in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East and provides a range of products and services for both retail and corporate customers that are fully compliant with the Islamic Sharia.
Zahir Nayani said: “Riyad Bank offers innovative financing solutions to its clients, and we were naturally delighted to work collaboratively with all transaction counterparties to complete this transaction and, in doing so, strengthen our relationship with Riyad Bank.”
The Foot Anstey team also recently advised on two landmark deals – the UK’s first Islamic financed acquisition of a mobile CT scanning unit, which will be used in the Bristol, and London-based fintech start-up Nester in what was thought to be the first UK peer-to-peer Islamic finance fintech transaction.
As well as Bristol, also has offices in Exeter, London, Plymouth, Southampton, Taunton and Truro. It works with leading brands and individuals predominantly across six key sectors: developers, energy & infrastructure, Islamic finance, private equity, private wealth, retail & consumer.
Pictured below: Zahir Nayani, Kate Heard and Leena Payyappilly of Foot Anstey’s Islamic finance team
