Criterion Capital
| Criterion Capital | |
| Company type | Private |
| Industry | Real estate |
| Founded | 26 July 2006 |
| Founder | Asif Aziz (CEO) |
| Headquarters | London |
Area served | Europe |
Key people | Faizan Ahmad (Director) Danish Hanif (Director) |
| Website | www |
Criterion Capital is a privately-held British property company, which owns and manages property estate in prime areas of London, particularly in Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus.[1]
History
[edit]The company was founded by current Chief Executive Asif Aziz, a Malawi-born developer.[2] The company's flagship project is the London Trocadero leisure complex on Piccadilly Circus, which was acquired in 2005. Part of the building was converted into a hotel which opened in 2020: the Zedwell Piccadilly has 728 windowless rooms and a large rooftop bar.[3][4]
In April 2020, the company served its tenants with notices that they would be met with legal action if they did not pay rent during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, despite the government moratorium on evictions.[5] The company extended rent-free periods to some tenants that were deemed to be "in need."[6] Plans were submitted in May 2020 to develop parts of the building's basement into a mosque.[7] These plans drew controversy as the Picadilly neighborhood was known for its nightlife rather than places of worship.[8]
Criterion Capital is also developing projects in Croydon with the purchase of two office buildings around 2015,[9] and has a riverside site at Enderby's Wharf, East Greenwich.[10]
The ultimate owner of the company is a trust linked to Aziz, via ACT Property Holdings Ltd, an Isle of Man company.[11]
In 2022, the company invested €80 million into residential apartments in Miraflores, Portugal. This was the company's first expansion outside of the United Kingdom.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ "Criterion Capital - Stay - Live - Work". criterioncapital.co.uk. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ Rudgard, Olivia (4 October 2017). "Billionaire property developer says he was never married to 'wife' in bid to protect fortune, court hears". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "Zedwell Piccadilly". Expedia. Archived from the original on 19 May 2021. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ Sheppard, Owen (5 March 2018). "Rooftop bar to be built on the Trocadero in expanded hotel plan". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 17 July 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ Meddings, Sabah. "Has coronavirus made Asif Aziz the meanest landlord in Britain?". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ "Landlords hit back at accusations of aggressive tactics". Financial Times. 26 April 2020. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ "Mosque plans submitted for London's Trocadero". BBC News. 20 May 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "Plan to open mosque in Trocadero in London sparks objections". the Guardian. 22 May 2020. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ Creighton, Sean (6 March 2015). "All yuppie apartments and no family homes – a risk for central Croydon?". Croydon Citizen. Archived from the original on 17 March 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
- ^ "Greenwich cruise terminal plan scrapped for housing". The Construction Index. 8 July 2019. Archived from the original on 8 July 2019. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
- ^ "Criterion Capital Limited: Annual report 2019". Companies House. March 2019. p. 13. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "Criterion Capital invests €80m in first resid..." PropertyEU News. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
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