The £100m tower will be 44-storeys high and contain 462 apartments to rent.

The scheme will see institutional investment used for the first time in the UK to build a large-scale residential rental development.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson hopes the scheme will act as a blueprint for future projects to attract more institutional investment to solve the capital’s housing crisis.

Institutional backing for the scheme has been secured via M3 Capital Partners and Mace will be main contractor on the job.

Homes in the tower, designed by Rogers Stirk and Harbour architects, will also be available on long leases and will mirror similar style longer-term rental apartments in large cities in the US.

The tower will also include a new theatre space for the Southwark Playhouse and a café as well as retail and marketing space.

Johnson said: “This ‘holy grail’ of investment in the riskier pre-development stage is a hugely important milestone but it is just the beginning.

“I want to entice other institutional investors to come forward and invest in quality homes for Londoners, boosting the economy and creating thousands of new jobs.”

David Grover, COO for Investment at Mace said: “We are delighted to have been appointed as developer partner on Newington Butts.

“This fantastic development will help deliver the Mayor’s vision for future living in London, a completely new type of rental offer in the London market, and we are proud to play our part.”

Darryl Flay, chief executive of Essential Living, said:  “With a quarter of Londoners now renting mainly from amateur landlords, it is vital that we create a branded sector that can deliver real quality for the first time.

“Because we manage the homes we build for rent, it enables us to take a long term approach to development, which differs hugely from traditional housebuilding.”

Work on the tower will begin early next year and it is earmarked for completion in 2017.