The Marina Bay Financial Centre (MBFC) is clinching another tenant, Nomura Singapore.
The Japanese bank, which acquired the operation of Lehman Brothers in late 2008, is expected to lease 100,000 square feet of office space in Tower 2 of MBCF, which is slated for completion in mid-2010.
The signing rent works out to slightly below $9 per square foot (psf) a month. Market watchers believe that the rent, which appears to be a little higher for a space of this size, could be due to Nomura’s decision to begin leasing the space after Tower 2 is completed.
Nomura is expected to give up the 90,000 square feet leasing space at Six Battery Road and Suntec City Tower 5 and move to MBCF either later this year or in early 2011.
Some observers suggest that Nomura will occupy the middle section of the 50-storey building.
Other occupants in the block include Australian resources company BHP Billiton, which has leased 231,000 square feet on the eleventh floor.
Murex South East Asia, Macquarie and Servcorp have also leased space in MBFC, which has a total of one million square feet of net lettable area (NLA).
Tower 2 is part of MBFC’s first phase, which is due for completion this year. Next door, the 33-storey, 620,000-square-feet Tower 1, is fully occupied. Its major tenant is Standard Chartered Bank. Others include Wellington International Management Company and French bank Natixis.