Malayan Bank Bhd (Maybank) has been sued by a developer of a luxury condo in the US for reneging on agreements to provide more than US$162 mil in syndicated construction loans and “effectively thwarting” the project, reports Bloomberg.
Sharif El-Gamal, the developer of a 43-storey upscale condominium in Manhattan’s Tribeca neighbourhood, said in a notice and summons filed in New York state court on Tuesday that Maybank and other syndicate members had “ignored and breached their obligations under the building facility and related loan documents.”
Their actions have caused “irreparable damage to the plaintiff’s relationship with its contractor, leading to a cessation of all work,” he was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.
Maybank is the largest bank by market capitalisation and total assets as well as the largest listed company on the Bursa Malaysia.
El-Gamal is seeking an award of more than US$245 mil, which he says is the projected net sell-out value of the property located at 43-47 Park Place, two blocks north of the former World Trade Center site. The residential units at the building have been priced at an average of over US$3,000 per square foot.
The syndicate filed a foreclosure action on the property in March. Bloomberg said Maybank declined to comment through a spokesperson. A lawyer representing El-Gamal’s Park Place Development Primary LLC didn’t return an email seeking comment about the summons.
The case is Park Place Development Primary LLC v. Malayan Bank Berhad, New York State Supreme Court (Manhattan). – June 11, 2020
