Wellcome Trust Launch USD1.6bn Offer for Olympic Park

March 17, 2011

According to the Financial Times, the Wellcome Trust has reportedly tabled an official £1bn (US$1.61bn) offer to the body managing the future of the Olympic Park to buy up the freehold for the majority of the site.

The trust has launched an ambitious bid for the freehold to land that includes the stadium, the aquatics centre and the media centre and has already been named as one of nine bidders for the athletes’ village, which will be converted into 2,800 apartments after the 2012 Games.

Reports in the Financial Times suggest that under the latest proposal, the government and City Hall would see an immediate return on the £675m ($1.09bn) owed to the National Lottery towards its contribution to the Games and could also start to repay the debts for the land in east London.

A spokesman for the trust stated: “In exploring [the Olympic village bid] further, we are giving detailed consideration as to how we may also become investors in the wider Olympic Park and optimise the legacy of the Olympics.”

Other heavyweight bidders for the athletes village development include the Qatari sovereign wealth fund, Sir Robert McAlpine’s construction group, insurance giant Aviva, Hutchison Whampoa and a string of property groups.