Jupiter Hotels sold for £160m
Patron Capital and West Register - the restructuring arm of RBS - have sold Jupiter Hotels to Thai investors Singha Estate and Fico for £160m.
The purchaser is a joint venture between Singha Estate, which is the real estate investment and development arm of the Boon Rawd Brewery Company in Thailand, and Fico Holding (UK), a subsidiary of Thailand-based Fico Group with assets in the UK, Germany and Thailand.
Last month it was announced on the Thai stock exchange that Jupiter would be acquired by a joint venture between Thai Industrial & Engineering Service (TIES) and Fico.
But the former partner dropped out because of the extended timeline that would have been required under Bangkok Stock Exchange rules to secure approval from shareholders.
Jupiter Hotels owns and manages 26 UK hotels operating under the Mercure brand, with a total of 2,883 rooms, most of which are owned freehold. It also manages a further six hotels.
Hotels include the Mercure Brighton Seafront, the Mercure Manchester Piccadilly (pictured)
Camil Yazbeck, investment director of hospitality and leisure at Patron Capital, said: "We bought this portfolio of 26 hotels with RBS in 2011 and have worked closely with a new management team to rebrand, refurbish and invest in the hotels and staff. The resulting improvements in trading and customer satisfaction have enabled us to achieve a successful exit and an excellent return for the investors. We would like to thank all the team at Jupiter Hotels for their hard work and wish them every success under the new owners."
Jupiter Hotels, headed by chief executive Shane Harris, was set up in 2011 to operate the regional UK properties after Jarvis Hotels went into administration.
CBRE was the agent for the sale.
