PLDT closes $128 million sale of Smart Tower

MANILA, Philippines — Telco giant PLDT on Friday closed the sale of Smart Tower in Makati for $128 million or roughly P6.14 billion, marking the largest commercial real estate transaction completed in the Philippines in 2020.

The sale completion was announced by property consultancy firm JLL, which advised PLDT on the deal.

The prime asset was purchased by Consunji-owned DMC Urban Property Developers Inc.

Under the terms of the transaction, PLDT, the will continue to occupy Smart Tower, which houses the corporate headquarters of its subsidiary, Smart, for the next five years via an accompanying leaseback agreement.

“Investor appetite for grade A assets in the Metro Manila area has remained high throughout an unpredictable year. The sale of the marquee Smart Tower reinforces the long-term confidence in the office market and the ambitions of corporate occupiers to reimagine their real estate holdings,” said Christophe Vicic, JLL Philippines country head.

Smart Tower is a 37-story office development with a gross floor area of 38,000 square meters and 244 parking slots located along Ayala Avenue, the premier business address in the country.

“An asset of this size and prestige is a rarity in the market. In a more telling sign of the evolving maturity of the Philippine real estate sector, we expect the sale and leaseback component of this transaction to prompt corporations to further re-evaluate asset light operating models,” said P.Ryan Isip, senior director and head of capital markets at JLL Philippines.