Vantage Capital invests $23m in PickAlbatros Hotels
Vantage Capital, Africa’s largest mezzanine fund manager, announced today that it has provided $23 million of mezzanine debt funding to PickAlbatros Hotels. The proceeds will be used to fund working capital and renovation work on several recently-acquired hotels.
PickAlbatros is a leading hotel owner and operator in Egypt, with a portfolio of 15 operating hotels and close to 10,000 rooms across the Red Sea resort towns of Hurghada, Sharm El Sheikh, Sahl Hasheesh and Marsa Alam. It also operates two hotels in Morocco. The Red Sea has become an increasingly popular tourist destination, especially amongst Europeans looking for an affordable beach holiday offering year-round sunshine, warm water and world-class diving and snorkelling. In fact, more than half of all tourists arriving into Egypt head directly to the Red Sea, and total tourist arrivals into the country have grown by over 140% from 2016 to 2019. PickAlbatros has played an important role in contributing to tourism growth in the region, through its ever-expanding portfolio of high-quality 4-star and 5-star hotels that include beachfront access, extensive networks of swimming pools and the largest water parks in the area. The hotel group has recently acquired five further hotels and part of Vantage’s funding will be used for renovations as the hotels are prepared for re-launch under the PickAlbatros brand.
David Kornik, partner at Vantage Capital noted, “While Covid-19 has created significant disruption to the global hospitality sector over the past year, we recognise that the longer-term growth potential for PickAlbatros Hotels remains firmly intact. The resilient performance delivered by the hotel group in recent months, despite widespread travel restrictions across its core European market, highlights the appeal of its high-quality, value-for-money offering across a broad range of markets. As vaccines become widely distributed, we expect international beach tourism to recover strongly and Egypt’s Red Sea is well-positioned to be an outsised benefactor over the years to come.”
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