Dubai-based developer buys stake in 5,000-home east London scheme

In September, the UAE developer bought a 75% stake in house builder Regal for £230m, with plans to rename Regal to Arada London and invest an additional £270m in trebling Regal’s pipeline to 30,000 homes over the next three years.

Thameside West, masterplanned by architect Foster + Partners, has already received consent and will provide at least 5,000 homes. Construction will begin in 2027 and 1,000 homes will be built in the first stage of the project.

It is one of Europe’s largest regeneration projects, with a gross development value of £2.5bn.

The scheme is connected to the Silvertown Tunnel, Custom House DLR and Elizabeth Line station, London City Airport and the IFS Cable Car. Arada, which will work with the London Borough of Newham, Greater London Authority and Transport for London (TfL) on the project, aims to build an additional DLR train station in partnership with TfL.

The developer was founded in the UAE in 2017 and has since expanded into the UK and Australia. Arada London is dedicated to building properties in London and has a pipeline of more than 10,000 homes including residential, student accommodation and regeneration projects.

The acquisition of Thameside West has increased Arada London’s development pipeline to 15,000 homes.

Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, chairman of Arada, said: “Our entry into this market was grounded in our unwavering faith in London and its attractiveness as one of the world’s leading capital cities.”

Tom Copley, London’s deputy mayor for housing and residential development, said: “This really is a fantastic example of how we can unlock London’s potential to deliver the homes our city so urgently needs.

“Working together, we will be able to deliver at least 5,000 new homes, 35% of which will be affordable, as part of a thriving new neighbourhood in the heart of this historic part of east London.”

This comes in the wake of other major international investments in the UK. Last month, Abbey Wood Sedgemere, a subsidiary of Indian developer HOH Capital Partners, received planning approval to build a 228-home BTR scheme on a brownfield site in south-east London.

Canadian investor Starlight Investments also bought 255 BTR homes under construction last month in Maidenhead, Berkshire. The deal marks the firm’s 10th BTR acquisition in the UK since it entered the market in 2023 – bringing its UK portfolio to 4,000 homes.

AustralianSuper, Australia’s largest pension fund, launched a new UK living sector platform with an initial £500m investment in rental homes last month including student housing, co-living and residential homes. It has been in talks to buy 500 BTR homes in Manchester – a deal worth around £170m.