ADQ and ADNEC Group have signed definitive agreements for the strategic acquisition of a 40.5 per cent stake in Egypt-based Talaat Moustafa Group (TMG) Holding’s hospitality arm, ICON Group, through a capital increase. ICON is a leading player in Egypt’s luxury and upscale hospitality market, with a track record of building and owning some of the most celebrated luxury hotels in Egypt. The group owns four operational hotels – Four Seasons Cairo at Nile Plaza, Kempinski Nile Hotel Cairo, Four Seasons Sharm El Sheikh and Four Seasons Alexandria at San Stefano – and has three hotels and luxury residential real estate assets currently under development, such as the Four Seasons in Madinaty and Luxor and Radisson Collection in Marsa Alam, and one hotel under design, the Four Seasons at The Pyramids. ADQ and ADNEC will invest through a special purpose vehicle, with 49 per cent equity ownership by ADQ and 51 per cent equity ownership by ADNEC. The transaction represents a major foreign direct investment (FDI) in Egypt and marks a vote of investor confidence in the Egyptian tourism and hospitality sector. The investment by ADQ and ADNEC in TMG’s hospitality arm will be used partially to de-leverage the existing debt of ICON, with the remaining used for the acquisition of a stake through ICON in the portfolio of seven luxury heritage hotels owned by the Egyptian Government, for which definitive agreements have been signed. The seven hospitality assets include Marriott Cairo Omar Khayyam Zamalek, Marriott MENA House Cairo, Sofitel Winter Palace Luxor, Sofitel Legend Old Cataract Aswan, Steigenberger Cecil Hotel Alexandria, Steigenberger Hotel El Tahrir Cairo and Mövenpick Resort Aswan. Post-transaction, ICON will have a combined portfolio of 15 luxury and upscale …
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