Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), which manages the €362 billion Norwegian Government Pension Fund – Global, has agreed to invest in The Crown Estate’s Regent Street properties in London. NBIM has agreed to buy a 150-year lease on a 25 percent stake in the assets for £448 million (€529 million).

The transaction is Norway’s sovereign wealth fund’s first direct property investment. It also marks the first time that The Crown Estate, which manages property throughout the United Kingdom on behalf of the Crown, will manage assets for a third-party investor.  The Regent Street properties include office and retail space. Retail tenants include Apple, Banana Republic and Jaeger; office tenants include Lloyds TSB and Matrix Group.