Global fund administration provider Apex Fund Services has agreed to lease an additional 1,021sq m (11,000sq ft) at its existing Dublin headquarters in Block 5 at the Irish Life Centre.
Having already occupied some 1,393sq m (15,000sq ft) of office space on the second floor of the building since 2018, the company will now take on part of the third floor by way of lease assignment on a 15-year lease from 2018 with the benefit of break options at a passing rent of €484.38 per sq m (€45 per sq ft). The assigner is the Austrian lender BAWAG Group who acquired German-owned Depfa Bank in 2021 and has since managed an orderly wind down of their operations in Ireland.
BNP Paribas Real Estate represented BAWAG Group while CBRE advised Apex Fund Services.
Apex Fund Services is a global and independent fund administration company with 35 offices worldwide providing a range of financial services based on fund administration, fund-launch solutions, financial outsourcing and technologies.
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The company’s new office space at the Irish Life Centre benefits from a high-quality contemporary office fit out completed in 2018. The open-plan areas are complemented by a mix of executive offices, meeting rooms and a boardroom seating up to 10 people. The part-third floor also comes equipped with a large canteen and tea-station facilities along with a dedicated shower facility.
Block 5, meanwhile, underwent a major refurbishment programme by the current landlord Irish Life in 2017, which saw its BER rating brought up to an impressive A3. The works included a significant upgrade to the public-realm areas within the wider Irish Life headquarter campus and the creation of a new civic square.
As reported by The Irish Times recently, Irish Life has now begun redeveloping the main office block at the Lower Abbey Street scheme. The project, which has full planning permission, will add a total of 59,600sq ft – or room for more than 500 additional workers – to its headquarters in the existing Block 3, bringing it to a total area of 209,200sq ft. The development will see the construction of a new 10th floor, and the full refurbishment of the property’s interior to encourage increased collaboration among Irish Life’s employees, and improved staff amenities, including a new garden pavilion above the three-storey atrium restaurant area.
As part of Irish Life’s ambition to meet its ESG (environmental, social and governance) goals the new Block 3 will be an nZEB (nearly zero energy building) property, meaning that the low amount of energy required will be covered to a very significant extent by energy from renewable sources. Irish Life is seeking to achieve an A-rated BER for the block.
