Saudi Arabia’s PIF sovereign wealth fund will buy a 49% stake in luxury hotel group Rocco Forte Hotels and help to support its expansion, the owner of Edinburgh’s Balmoral Hotel said on Monday.
PIF’s stake purchase gives the hotel group an enterprise value of around £1.4 billion.
In a statement, the hotel fir said: “Rocco Forte Hotels is pleased to announce that the Public Investment Fund (PIF) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a significant minority stake in the group.
“The Forte family will retain majority ownership and control. The arrangement sees the Italian entity CDPE Investimenti (CDPEI) selling its entire stake.
“PIF’s investment will include an element of primary equity which will accelerate the brand’s expansion in both existing and new global markets, building on the group’s track record of growth and development that includes eight new properties opened or committed in recent years.
“Sir Rocco Forte will remain Executive Chairman, alongside Olga Polizzi, who will continue as Deputy Chairman. Charles Forte, Lydia Forte and Irene Forte will also continue to hold key roles in the business.
“Completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approval.”
Rocco Forte said: “PIF is an excellent partner for us going forward. We have established an extremely good relationship during the course of our negotiations.
“They share the same vision for the brand and the future strategy of the group with the same ambition to take a long-term view. I look forward to working with PIF to expand the group and improve the high level of service we offer our customers.
“We thank CDPEI for having shared the past fruitful eight years during which we both successfully accomplished the mission we shared when we started the journey, having significantly enhanced the value of the company and increased the group’s presence in Italy and across Europe.”
Turqi Al Nowaiser, Deputy Governor and Head of International Investments Division at PIF, said: “Our investment in Rocco Forte Hotels reflects PIF’s confidence in both the commercial opportunity and strength of the international hospitality and tourism industries that have shown remarkable resilience in recent years. As active long-term investors, PIF will continue to invest strategically in promising sectors to achieve sustainable returns globally.”
Rocco Forte Hotels currently comprises: Hotel de la Ville, Hotel de Russie and Rocco Forte House, Rome; Hotel Savoy, Florence; Verdura Resort, Rocco Forte Private Villas and Villa Igiea, Sicily; Masseria Torre Maizza, Puglia; The Balmoral, Edinburgh; Brown’s Hotel, London; The Charles Hotel, Munich; Hotel de Rome, Berlin; Hotel Amigo, Brussels and Hotel Astoria, St Petersburg.