Cycas Hospitality Add Bankside Hotel, London To Their Management Portfolio, After Sale to Vertiq Capital
Main Photo: The stylish, art-led hotel in London’s Bankside
Date: June 2022
Name: Bankside Hotel, An Autograph Collection Hotel
Location: Bankside, close to Waterloo station, London, England, UK
Number of Keys: 161
Seller: An affiliate of the Realstar group of companies and it’s joint venture partner Amerimar Enterprises
Buyer: Vertiq Capital, a Private Equity company, based in Milan, with several non-hotel interests such as Agriculture (olive oil production), Digital Consulting, Music Industry (collection of recording royalties) and Renewable Energy
An affiliate of the Realstar group of companies and it’s joint venture partner Amerimar Enterprises has announced the sale of the Bankside Hotel, part of the Autograph Collection, to Vertiq Capital.
The luxury hotel, which comprises 161 guest bedrooms, was conceived and developed by the ownership group and opened in October 2018, under management by Amerimar.
The design-led hotel is located on the banks of River Thames and is part of the One Blackfriars mixed-use development complex. The property is home to an all-day restaurant, gym, event space, and roof terrace, as well as a retail space currently occupied by a branch of Gail’s Bakery.
The hotel will continue to trade under Marriott’s Autograph Collection franchise and will be managed by Cycas Hospitality.
Ryan Prince, Vice Chairman at Realstar Group, commented: “The Bankside Hotel is without a doubt one of our greatest design and service achievements to date as a firm. We feel proud of what it brings to customers in London’s dynamic and growing South Bank location and look forward to continuing to see it thrive.”
Jon Cummins, President of Amerimar, added: “We are exceptionally proud of what the ownership and management team has created at Bankside and look forward to seeing the property continue to flourish.”
Erik Jacobs, Partner at Vertiq Capital, said: “We are very excited to add the Bankside Hotel to our portfolio. The hotel’s strategic location, its attractive design and the friendly staff are a great foundation to help the hotel achieving its potential. With a BREAM excellent rating, this recently constructed hotel is well placed to meet the present and future customer demands. We look forward working with Cycas Hospitality to manage the hotel, as well as expanding our relationship with Marriott.”
Realstar was advised by Eastdil Secured and Macfarlanes. Vertiq Capital was advised by CMS and Deloitte.
Following this deal funding was supplied by Aareal Bank to the tune of €140m for this deal and an Accor 25 hours hotel in Paris. The financing was disbursed as two separate loans, respectively entailing the refinancing of the 25hours Paris Terminus Nord in Paris and the acquisition financing of the Bankside Hotel, Autograph Collection in London. The latter was assessed and qualified as a Green Loan under Aareal Bank’s third-party certified Green Finance Framework.
“We are pleased to announce our inaugural transaction with Vertiq”, stated Bettina Graef-Parker, Managing Director, Special Property Finance at Aareal Bank. “Despite new political and economic uncertainties, the travel industry has seen a strong recovery since Covid-related restrictions have been gradually lifted. We are therefore strengthened in our view that the hotel sector has a high degree of resilience and will continue looking to expand our loan portfolio through carefully selected top-tier properties in prime locations.”
“We have chosen to work with Aareal on these loans because of their expertise in hotel financing and in-depth knowledge of and commitment to the hotel market in general. Their ability to work swiftly in different jurisdictions against a tight timeline has made it a real pleasure to work with the Aareal hotel team”, said Erik Jacobs, Partner at Vertiq Capital.
Vertiq Capital is a real estate investment manager with a focus on hospitality and other operational assets. The 25hours Paris Terminus Nord and the Bankside Hotel, Autograph Collection are part of a growing pan-European strategy to invest in upscale lifestyle hotels across the key urban markets in Europe. Vertiq will work with various capital partners to execute its investment strategies.
Vertiq Capital Partners was advised by CMS in London and SKBG in Paris. Aareal was advised by DLA Piper and De Pardieu for legal matters and HVS for valuation.
Price: Undisclosed
THPT Comment: This very boutique hotel made a stir when it opened in 2018, for it’s art-led stylish decor. A good buy for Vertiq – their entree into the hotel market?
First Seen: Boutique Hotelier and Aareal Bank press release
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