Business
Poonawalla’s aye for Brexit
Executive director and chief executive officer of Serum Institute of India Limited, Asia’s largest vaccine maker, 35-year-old Adar 
Poonawalla (pictured) sees Brexit (the UK’s exit from the European Union) as an opportunity to acquire luxury property in that country. The British currency’s plunge to near 30-year lows and concern that London’s luxury-property market will crash have been quoted as key factors behind this move. Speaking to The Times of India (TOI), Poonawalla, who along with his father Dr Cyrus runs the billion dollar vaccine company, said, "I’m always looking for a good deal because sometimes you get a distressed sale, someone wants a quick easy deal, and we’ve got the liquidity to do that.” The report also states that "he expects the uncertainty surrounding Brexit will mean he won’t make any deals for another year or two.”
Optimistic about future growth of the British economy, Poonawalla, who studied at London’s University of Westminster, was quoted as saying, "Brexit was the best thing for the country.” Stating that some business might get hit for the first two years, "eventually after three years I think the UK will come out far stronger than in Europe,” he said.
In 2014, Poonawalla had hoped Grosvenor House — a luxury hotel on Park Lane in London — would become his second home, away from Poona. "The plan was to convert ‘a couple of thousand square feet’ into a private residence offering all the amenities of the adjoining five-star hotel, which the family would run,” according to the TOI report. The 550 million pound bid was rejected. Last year Poonawalla had agreed to pay Rs 750 crore for a former maharaja’s residence in Bombay that most recently housed the US consulate. (See "Platinum Poonawalla,” Events and Personalities, Parsiana, October 7, 2015). The Poonawallas said at the time that they planned to use the building, known as Lincoln House, as a weekend home.
Poonawalla (pictured) sees Brexit (the UK’s exit from the European Union) as an opportunity to acquire luxury property in that country. The British currency’s plunge to near 30-year lows and concern that London’s luxury-property market will crash have been quoted as key factors behind this move. Speaking to The Times of India (TOI), Poonawalla, who along with his father Dr Cyrus runs the billion dollar vaccine company, said, "I’m always looking for a good deal because sometimes you get a distressed sale, someone wants a quick easy deal, and we’ve got the liquidity to do that.” The report also states that "he expects the uncertainty surrounding Brexit will mean he won’t make any deals for another year or two.”Optimistic about future growth of the British economy, Poonawalla, who studied at London’s University of Westminster, was quoted as saying, "Brexit was the best thing for the country.” Stating that some business might get hit for the first two years, "eventually after three years I think the UK will come out far stronger than in Europe,” he said.
In 2014, Poonawalla had hoped Grosvenor House — a luxury hotel on Park Lane in London — would become his second home, away from Poona. "The plan was to convert ‘a couple of thousand square feet’ into a private residence offering all the amenities of the adjoining five-star hotel, which the family would run,” according to the TOI report. The 550 million pound bid was rejected. Last year Poonawalla had agreed to pay Rs 750 crore for a former maharaja’s residence in Bombay that most recently housed the US consulate. (See "Platinum Poonawalla,” Events and Personalities, Parsiana, October 7, 2015). The Poonawallas said at the time that they planned to use the building, known as Lincoln House, as a weekend home.◆ ◆ ◆
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