London: Non-Resident Indian (NRI) steel wizard Lakshmi Mittal, the richest Asian in the UK has bought a central London house for a record price of 70 million pounds, a leading daily reported today (Apr 11, 2004).

The contracts for the 12-bed room house in the prestigious Kensington Palace Gardens, near the official residence of the Indian High Commissioner, was exchanged earlier this month, 'The Sunday Times' claimed.

Mittal, who is worth an estimated 3.5 billion pounds according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2004, is expected to move his family into the mansion soon.

The mansion which has garage space for 20 cars, was sold by former Labour donor, Bernie Ecclestone, the Formula One racing boss, who bought it for his wife three years ago.

According to the report, the sale is likely to be recognized in the Guinness Book of Records as the most expensive. The previous record was 62.7 million pounds for a 1997 sale in Hong Kong.

The Kensington Palace gardens houses are dubbed "billionaires" row. Nearby are Kensington Palace and the London home of the Sultan of Brunei. It consists of the former Egyptian embassy and a one-time annexe to Russia's embassy knocked together.