DEREK QUINLAN, the former tax adviser who outbid a Saudi prince to acquire the Savoy hotel group, is to buy the Bank of Ireland’s headquarters on Baggot Street, Dublin, from the bank’s pension fund.

His firm, Quinlan Private, is believed to be paying close to €200m for the property and sources say that, unusually for the deal maker, it may not include the backing of a syndicate of investors.

Quinlan outbid a number of rivals to secure the landmark.

The sale of the Bank of Ireland headquarters to Quinlan follows the sale of the Allied Irish Bank’s headquarters to property developer Sean Dunne earlier this year.

The Bank of Ireland pension fund, known as Salix, announced its intention to sell the premises in March after an extensive property review. The bank signed a 99-year lease when it moved into the property in 1972. The bank is reportedly paying only 60% of the open market rental value at the site.

Sources believe the bank could face a 50% hike in its rent following the sale to Quinlan, but it will only sign a short-term lease and will instead explore the possibility of building a new headquarters elsewhere. It is expected that Quinlan will then seek to redevelop the site.

The bank has conducted a review of all its property requirements, and is examining ways of accommodating all its head office staff on one site. Only 1,600 of the 7,000 non-branch staff are based at the Baggot Street office. The rest are based at 31 different centres and only two of those properties are owned by the bank.

As part of the same property review, the bank recently announced plans to sell and lease back 35 branches, which could raise up to €300m.

Quinlan’s purchase of the bank building represents a rare recent foray into the local property market for the increasingly international group. The site is attractive as it will provide a strong rental income for the developer while planning permission is sought to redevelop and enlarge the building.

Quinlan Private’s decision to assume all the equity in the deal reflects the substantial reserves built up within the operations. A spokesman for Quinlan Private would not comment on the deal.