Cliveden nears refinancing deal
Cliveden, the historic hotel in Taplow, Buckinghamshire, is close to finalising a deal for its refinancing, it emerged last week.
Cliveden Group, which also operates the Royal Crescent hotel in Bath and the Cliveden Town House hotel in London, has been in negotiations to attract a new major investor for some time. The change is being driven by investment bank Lazard, which wants to sell its 65% stake in the group.
Laurence Beere, general manager of the hotel, confirmed this week that there were "continuing discussions" on a new deal but would comment no further because of confidentiality agreements.
However, it is understood that Cliveden wants to replace Lazard with another investor rather than sell out to another hotel group. Insiders say that negotiations should be completed "within a couple of months".
The other investors in Cliveden include its management company Destination Hotels & Resorts, owned by Los Angeles-based property developer Lowe Enterprises, which has a 25% stake. The remaining 10% is held by Cascade, a personal investment company of computer tycoon Bill Gates.