The mystery tenant who signed a record office lease at 9 West 57th Street is a Mexican billionaire who’s currently dating Emma Watson.
Gonzalo Hevia Baillères is the grandson of the late businessman Alberto Baillères González — known as the “King of Silver” for his vast mining empire. He was Mexico’s fourth-richest person when he died in 2022 with a net worth of $8.5 billion.
Gonzalo, 28, is the founder of Lok, an AI logistics company. His holding company, HBeyond, signed the record $327.50-per-square-foot lease at Soloviev Group’s 9 West.
“HBeyond is a multinational holding company which operates across venture capital, public and private markets, as well as the creation of new businesses,” Soloviev Group said. “Currently, it has a strong emphasis on US-based innovation in AI and technology.”
In addition to his business interests, Gonzalo has been in the spotlight recently thanks to his relationship with Watson. Photos of the two have been splashed across Instagram and Page Six.
HBeyond’s record lease raised the bar for Manhattan’s office market as high-quality buildings continue to see strong demand.
“The price speaks for itself,” Stefan Soloviev said in a statement last week.
HBeyond’s 10-year deal covers 5,063 square feet on the northwest corner of 9 West’s 50th floor, which offers the best views of Central Park.
The previous record-holder was SL Green’s One Vanderbilt, which in 2022 signed a 9,871 square-foot deal exceeding $300 per square foot on its highest office floor with the Canadian waste management company GFL Environmental.
Rents above $300 a foot are still extremely rare a decade after L&L Holdings first broke that mark in 2015 when Ken Griffin’s Citadel paid that price for the penthouse portion of its 200,000-square-foot space at 425 Park Avenue. But they are becoming more common.
Manhattan recorded one such lease last year when SL Green signed the infrastructure service provider Kyndryl to a $305 per square foot deal for 6,300 square feet at One Vanderbilt.
But the market could be headed more toward that direction. Deals for previous price barriers that were once thought to be exceptional — such as $100 and $200 a foot — are now much more commonplace.
New York saw a record 313 leases starting at $100 per square foot or more in 2025, up from 2024’s record of 212 leases, according to JLL’s annual report of top-of-market deals. There were 28 deals at $200 per square foot or higher, including six deals above $250.
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