Qatar fund set to buy Canary Wharf - paper

Qatar's sovereign wealth fund is set to take over Songbird Estates, owner and manager of much of Canary Wharf, as the Gulf state expands its growing London property portfolio, the Times reported on Friday.

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) plans to spend more than $700 million to buy the 76 percent of Songbird it does not already own, the paper said.

Songbird's two top shareholders are currently Qatar and China's wealth funds.

However, Songbird Estates said on Friday that it hasn't received any approaches from investor and major shareholder QIA, but its shares soared on speculation that the Gulf sovereign wealth fund is considering a takeover of the property specialist, according to a report by newswire Zawya Dow Jones.

A spokeswoman for Songbird said the company hasn't received "any approach" from QIA at all, whether to launch a bid or increase its shareholding in the company, it added.

QIA is one of the world's largest sovereign wealth funds with an estimated $60bn or more in assets under management.

Its investment arm has stakes in British supermarket chain J Sainsbury, bank Barclays, the London Stock Exchange and Credit Suisse.

Last month Qatar Holding, the prime vehicle for strategic and direct investments by the State of Qatar, bought the famous London department store Harrods from Egyptian-born businessman Mohamed al-Fayed. (Reuters)