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New York

Blackstone closes on 44 Wall Street buy

Seller Obligo had settled legal spat with Swig, Zamir in May

44 Wall Street (Inset: Blackstone's Jonathan Gray)
44 Wall Street (Inset: Blackstone's Jonathan Gray)

The Blackstone Group closed on the purchase of office building 44 Wall Street, according to sources.

The transfer is part of a $2.7 billion real estate portfolio sale of assets owned by Norwegian investment firm Obligo in Scandinavia, Latvia, Germany and the U.S.

The sale was preceded by a settlement in late May between Obligo and the tower’s minority stakeholders, Kent Swig and Asher Zamir.

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Swig bought 44 Wall Street in 2004 with unnamed partners from Lend Lease Real Estate for $65 million. According to court records, as of November 2012 Swig held a 12.2 percent stake in the property, Zamir held 9.6 percent and an entity tied to Obligo held 78.2 percent. During the course of 2012, Obligo moved to take over the minority stakes after Swig, who was reportedly in financial trouble at the time, and Zamir failed to meet capital calls.

Swig and Zamir contested the takeover in a November 2012 lawsuit, which dragged on for more than three years and left the building’s ultimate ownership structure unclear.

It’s not immediately clear what the portfolio sale values 44 Wall Street at, but it’s likely to be well over $100 million.

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Blackstone GroupKent Swig