 Oxley’s award-winning Royal Wharf project in London along the River Thames comprises of 3,400 apartments and townhouses, about 15,000 sqm of office space as well as 5,000 sqm of retail and F&B space. Artist’s Impression: Company
OXLEY HOLDINGS repurchased close to a million of its shares from the open market over the past week, successfully stemming the market’s knee-jerk reaction to its exposure to the British pound. |
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- Ching Chiat Kwong |
Currently, Oxley has the following business exposure in the UK.
- The Royal Wharf Project, a 363,000 sqm waterfront township development in East London
- A 20% stake in Galliard (Group) Ltd, a leading UK property developer
- A plot of land at Deanston Wharf, that has yet to be developed
There are two sides to the Brexit coin. Oxley’s management pointed out the Group is protected by a natural currency hedge as cost of construction and bank loans for its UK projects are settled in GPB.
This means the currency depreciation will not hit the Group’s top line and will only be reflected in UK’s profit contribution to the Group.
On a more positive note, the cheaper GBP has generated more enquiries by prospective buyers from overseas.
Spillover demand for Dublin project
Uncertainty over UK's economic outlook may indirectly boost demand for Oxley's project in Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland as some foreign investment earmarked for the UK may now flow to Ireland.
This can be financial services companies relocating to Ireland or an increase in investment in Irish commercial property originally intended for the UK.
Oxley has a 2.35-hectare site next to the proposed new headquarters of the Central Bank of Ireland. The development comprises of 60,000 sqm of Grade A office space and over 200 apartments. The project has been scheduled to be launched this year and the next.
