City Bridge Foundation Sells Finsbury House – City of London 2026

Key points

• As reported by CoStar News, the City Bridge Foundation charity has sold Finsbury House in the City of London to Eatos Group Real Estate on a 155‑year lease for £9.5 million.
• The transaction involves 23 Finsbury Circus, a historic office building of around 29,233 square feet, which is currently fully let but has been stripped back to shell and core as part of a redevelopment scheme.
• LoopNet listings describe the property as a “prime, fully consented, office redevelopment” in the heart of the City core, with a newly granted long leasehold interest from the City Bridge Foundation.
• Eatos Group is a private‑equity‑style real‑estate investment and asset‑management firm headquartered in London, with a focus on acquiring and managing prime UK property assets.
• The £9.5 million price equates to roughly £324.98 per square foot, reflecting the building’s prominent corner location, high‑quality floor plates, and planning‑consented upgrade to modern office standards.

City of London (The Londoner News) April 17, 2026 – The City Bridge Foundation charity has sold Finsbury House, located at 23 Finsbury Circus in the City of London, to Eatos Group Real Estate on a 155‑year lease for £9.5 million, according to real‑estate news outlet CoStar News. The transaction underlines continued interest from private‑equity‑style investors in City‑core office stock, even as the wider London market contends with evolving demand for flexible, high‑quality workspace.

What is Finsbury House and why is it significant?

Finsbury House, also listed commercially as 23 Finsbury Circus, is a historic office building in the City’s financial district, originally constructed in the 1890s by the architects Gordon, Lowther & Gunton. It forms part of the wider Finsbury Circus estate, which was laid out between 1775 and 1800 by George Dance the Younger, one of the first formally planned squares in London.

As detailed in the LoopNet investment listing, the property offers approximately 29,233 square feet of office space on a highly prominent corner site, with generous floor plates and access to a GPAD‑consented scheme to deliver “best‑in‑class” offices. “A prime, fully consented, office redevelopment in the heart of the City Core,” the listing states, describing the asset as “fully stripped out to shell and core” in preparation for its upgraded specification.

How is the deal structured and at what price?

The sale structure is a 155‑year leasehold deal, not a full freehold acquisition, with the City Bridge Foundation retaining ownership of the underlying title while leasing the building long‑term to Eatos Group Real Estate. The £9.5 million headline price implies a unit rate of about £324.98 per square foot, which LoopNet notes in the context of the property’s location, size, and redevelopment potential.

CoStar News reports that the charity has “secured a buyer” for the building, highlighting that the transaction is being positioned as a long‑term, income‑generating asset for the purchaser rather than a quick speculative flip. The length of the lease term suggests an emphasis on stable, long‑duration income, which is consistent with strategies seen among private‑equity‑backed real‑estate funds in central London.

Who is Eatos Group and what does this purchase signal?

Eatos Group Real Estate is a London‑based real‑estate investment and asset‑management company that operates as a private‑equity‑style firm specialising in UK property. As outlined on the company’s LinkedIn profile, Eatos focuses on acquiring and managing prime mixed‑use and office assets, with a track record of building a portfolio of around £50 million of assets in recent years.

The firm’s LinkedIn page notes that in 2025 it acquired 16 Old Compton Street, a six‑storey freehold mixed‑use asset in Soho, marking what it described as the first acquisition of that year. Taken together with the Finsbury House purchase, the move suggests a continued strategy of adding City‑core and central‑London office stock to its portfolio, prioritising locations with strong planning permissions and redevelopment upside.

Why is this lease of interest in the current market?

Real‑estate commentators have noted that demand for flexible, high‑quality office space in London’s financial district remains a key driver for transactions, even as many firms review hybrid‑working policies. A separate report by London Daily News observed that The City of London Corporation estimated roughly 1.9 million square metres of additional, high‑quality office space would be needed in the area over time, underscoring the underlying long‑term demand for upgraded stock.

Within that context, the Finsbury House deal plugs into a broader pattern of private‑equity‑backed buyers targeting assets that can be re‑let or repositioned to attract large corporate tenants or flexible‑office operators. The fact that the building is already “100% let” but has been stripped back to shell and core indicates that Eatos is purchasing an asset with both an existing income stream and a clear path to value‑enhancing refurbishment.

How does the City Bridge Foundation’s role fit into the story?

The City Bridge Foundation is a London‑based charity that historically owns and manages property assets to generate income for philanthropic purposes across the capital. By leasing Finsbury House on a 155‑year term, the charity is converting a long‑held asset into a steady, long‑duration income stream rather than retaining it as a directly managed property.

This approach is consistent with strategies some charitable landlords have adopted in recent years, where long leases to institutional or private‑equity‑backed buyers are used to secure capital receipts or long‑term ground rents while still allowing the underlying asset to remain in the charity’s name. The £9.5 million headline consideration could be used to support the charity’s wider grant‑making activities or to reinvest in other assets, although specific allocation details have not been disclosed in the public reporting.

What do the physical and planning characteristics of the building suggest?

Finsbury House sits on a “highly prominent corner site,” benefiting from strong visibility and access within the City’s core financial district, according to the LoopNet listing. The building’s floor plates are described as generous, which is attractive both to large corporate occupiers and to operators seeking to create flexible‑office or serviced‑workspace environments.

The listing also notes that the asset has a “GPAD consented scheme” in place, referring to a planning‑approved redevelopment strategy to bring the property up to modern, best‑in‑class office standards. While the building is currently presented as stripped back to shell and core, that consented scheme reduces regulatory risk for the new leaseholder and allows for a more predictable timetable for any refurbishment or re‑let.

Background of the particular development

Finsbury House at 23 Finsbury Circus has its roots in the late‑19th‑century expansion of the City of London’s financial district, when Gordon, Lowther & Gunton constructed the original office block. It sits within the wider Finsbury Circus estate, an early example of planned urban design in London, laid out between 1775 and 1800 by George Dance the Younger.

Over the decades the building has been adapted to successive waves of City office demand, most recently undergoing a stripping‑out to shell and core in preparation for a modern redevelopment. In the current cycle, the City Bridge Foundation has used the sale‑and‑leaseback structure to secure a purchaser willing to invest further in the asset, while retaining a long‑term relationship with the site through the 155‑year lease.

Eatos Group’s entry into the deal reflects a broader trend whereby private‑equity‑style real‑estate investors seek to acquire City‑core office stock with consented upgrade plans, betting on the enduring demand for central‑London workspace even as hybrid‑working patterns evolve. The £9.5 million headline price and the per‑square‑foot valuation also sit within a wider City‑of‑London market context, where recent lettings at buildings such as One Leadenhall have reached record‑high rents, reinforcing the premium placed on prime locations.

How this development could affect different audiences

For institutional and private‑equity investors, the Finsbury House transaction may signal that long‑leasehold, redevelopable office stock in the City core remains attractive when paired with clear planning consents and a strong location. Such deals could encourage more investors to target similar assets, particularly those that can be repositioned for larger corporate tenants or flexible‑office operators, potentially supporting capital values in select submarkets.

For charitable property owners and other mission‑driven landlords, the 155‑year sale‑and‑leaseback structure offers a template for balancing long‑term income generation with retention of the underlying title. This approach might appeal to other charities weighing options between directly managing properties and monetising them through long‑term leases to specialist operators, while still using the generated proceeds to fund their core activities.

For Central London office occupiers and flexible‑workspace operators, the deal underlines that there is still capital being deployed into City‑core office stock, which can translate into upgraded buildings and more modern workspace environments over time. If Eatos Group follows through on the GPAD‑consented scheme, the market could see a refreshed, higher‑specification asset available for re‑letting, potentially influencing the mix of supply in the City’s competitive office landscape.