Zara owner Amancio Ortega to buy Toronto skyscraper Royal Bank Plaza for $1.2B

Spanish billionaire and Zara founder Amancio Ortega has agreed to buy a landmark Canadian skyscraper for the equivalent of roughly $1.2 billion, according to his private office.

Pontegadea, the family office of the main shareholder of fashion group Inditex, on Thursday confirmed the deal to buy Toronto’s Royal Bank Plaza. The deal was first reported by Bloomberg News in Canada.

Current owners Oxford Properties Group and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board hired RBC Capital Markets to explore a potential sale last September.

A landmark in Toronto’s financial district, the downtown office complex was built in the late 1970s and is home to leading banks including its namesake tenant, the Royal Bank of Canada. It is also home to law firms and technology companies and covers some 1.5 million square feet across two towers.

The building sits across the street from the Union Station transit hub and the windows of the building are clad in 24-karat gold, which gives the building its distinctive gleaming appearance.

Oxford Properties did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The deal would be the largest single commercial real estate transaction in Canada since the pandemic started. A shift toward working from home has raised questions about the value of iconic locations in major cities should the trend continue.

CBC