Ken Griffin’s Florida takeover: Citadel founder shells out $180M for latest piece of Miami empire
Citadel founder partners with Goldman Properties to purchase 545Wyn office building in Wynwood creative district
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Hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin appears to be expanding his business presence in Miami, adding to his already sizable real estate portfolio.
The Citadel founder partnered with Goldman Properties to purchase the 545Wyn office building for $180 million from Chicago-based developer Sterling Bay, according to the South Florida Business Journal.
Anonymous sources close to the deal told the outlet that Griffin is a partner in the purchase, though the listed buyer is Goldman Properties CEO Scott Srebnick.
Neither Citadel nor Goldman Properties immediately responded to Fox News Digital’s request for confirmation or comment.
Two of Miami’s top-grossing real estate agents told Fox News Digital the move appears strategic and is unlikely to be a one-off purchase, but rather the beginning of a larger Wynwood land grab.
Sources told the South Florida Business Journal that Citadel founder Ken Griffin was part of a $180 million Wynwood office purchase. (Sterling Bay/Getty Images)
"This looks more strategic than operational. Brickell is about scale and visibility — Wynwood is about flexibility and culture," the Corcoran Group's Mick Duchon said. "Creative office [space] attracts a different workforce and tenant mix. Owning both allows to hedge across asset classes while controlling the ecosystems around where talent actually wants to work."
"Given previous track records, it’s unlikely to be a one-off. It often marks the beginning of a longer-term vision rather than a single transaction," Douglas Elliman's Lourdes Alatriste added. "The endgame is balance. This portfolio touches luxury living, global business and cultural innovation. It reflects a belief in Miami not just as a place to invest, but as a city with multiple centers of gravity, each serving a different purpose yet reinforcing the whole."
Located at 545 NW 26th Street in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood, the 10-story building spans nearly 400,000 square feet, the property listing on Blanca Commercial Real Estate's website states.
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Wynwood has traditionally been a tech and creative hub in Miami, and the deal would mark Griffin’s first entry into the neighborhood after he spent hundreds of millions of dollars on properties in Star Island, Coconut Grove and Palm Beach.
"When an investor of his caliber enters a neighborhood, underwriting assumptions immediately change, cap rates compress, land pricing recalibrates, and long-term institutional capital feels safer stepping in. For Wynwood, this isn’t a short-term spike; it’s a structural re-rating of the district," Duchon noted.
"Wynwood needed time to mature beyond its creative roots. Brickell offered certainty early on, such as financial infrastructure, zoning clarity and scale. Wynwood today is different," Alatriste said. "It has stabilized, it’s proven demand for high-quality offices, and it’s become a place where people want to spend time, not just work. The timing reflects confidence that Wynwood has fully arrived."
Citadel's Ken Griffin makes remarks during the second day of the FII PRIORITY Summit on February 20, 2025, in Miami Beach, Florida. | Getty Images
"Wynwood is Miami's second most expensive office market behind Brickell, according to a report last year from CRE Daily. Real estate values are set by true mixed-use demand and the neighborhood’s ability to function as a real daily hub and not just a weekend destination," ALP.X Group founder Sebastian Lüdke — who works with Goldman Global Arts — told Fox News Digital. "This transaction is just the latest example of the opportunity Wynwood presents to investors in the greater Miami market."
Citadel is also breaking ground on its new 1.2 million-square-foot global headquarters tower in Miami’s Brickell financial district but currently holds a temporary lease at 830 Brickell Plaza, according to the company’s website.
Griffin moved his hedge fund from Chicago to Miami in 2022, and recently opened up about what led to that decision during an appearance at the America Business Forum in November.
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"I've lived in a failed city-state. I lived in Chicago for 30-some years. I had two colleagues who had bullets fly through their cars," Griffin told Fox News’ Bret Baier.
"I had 25 bullet holes in the front of my building where I lived. You can't live in a city awash [with] violent crime," he continued.