Bank of Ireland Private Banking has bought the Cite du Retiro building in Paris, which houses the headquarters of Cartier International and ...

Bank of Ireland Private Banking has bought the Cite du Retiro building in Paris, which houses the headquarters of Cartier International and covers 21,000 square metres. The bank paid €285 million ($340.1 million) for the property.

The move comes a few days after Irish property developer, Derek Quinlan, bought the offices of Barclays Private Bank in London in order to expand Claridge’s hotel.

A survey released this week in Ireland found that property remains the top investment choice for Ireland's top earners.

The survey was carried out in the high net worth market and showed that 33 per cent of those polled intend to take out a property investment in the next 18 months.