Munich Re Group plans to acquire a 39-story Madison Avenue high-rise in New York City.

Buyer and seller declined to disclose the purchase price. CBRE advised the unnamed seller, and MEAG, which had support from EastBanc, advised Munich Re. MEAG manages the assets of Munich Re and ERGO, overseeing an overall investment portfolio valued at €278bn ($308 billion).

Munich Re does not appear to have any immediate plans to move operations into the building, which is next to Grand Central Station near the New York Public Library and Bryant Park in the heart of midtown Manhattan.

The acquisition announcement noted the area around Grand Central is experiencing a resurgence due to its access to public transit and recent rezoning for increased density. A spokesperson pointed out that Munich Re has a number of businesses in New York including Munich Re Specialty Insurance, MEAG and Munich Life U.S, among others. None of the units will move to the new at 330 Madison Avenue in the short term.

Tony Kuczinski, CEO of Munich Reinsurance America, Inc, said the building “is a perfect fit for our existing New York City business activities to be based in one common location over time.” But the spokesperson explained that for now, Munich Re America has no plans to move its headquarters or to leave Princeton, New Jersey, where employees are also based. For the new building, Munich Re will consider its needs versus availability and demand, the spokesperson said.

Munich Re’s new acquisition was built in 1963 and was designed by Ely Jacques Kahn, one of the fathers of the New York City skyline. It was renovated in 2012, with features including a new glass curtainwall façade, lobby, and updated systems that achieved LEED Gold certification. The building offers 852,000 sq. ft. of Class A space that is 95 percent leased to prominent tenants, among them Guggenheim Partners, JLL, and HSBC, Munich Re said.

Hans-Joachim Barkmann, managing director of MEAG, said in prepared remarks that the American real estate market is outperforming continental Europe, which made its Manhattan investment an attractive one.

Source: Munich Re