The transaction,but not the buyer,was confirmed by the West Melbourne property's selling agents Colliers International,with title records showing the deal was settled on October 16 for $23,375,000.
The large single-storey hall originally built in 1915 was destroyed by fire in 1955 and was rebuilt a year later in time for the Olympic Games. More recently,artists such as Oasis,Red Hot Chili Peppers and Powderfinger played there.
It was also known as the House of Stoush,with some of the biggest names in boxing − Lionel Rose,Johnny Famechon and Anthony Mundine − gracing the ring inside.
The listed buyer of the Dudley Street venue is Community Venues Limited,which Mr Houston revealed was an entity set up by the church for it to use Festival Hall as its Melbourne base.
Mr Houston said the hope was to renovate the venue and Hillsong will be the main tenant.
"Hillsong will be the anchor tenant − we're going to continue running it as a community venue,"he said. The Christian mega church is known for its lively worship and use of rock music during services.