International law firm Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner (BCLP) has successfully advised Grange Hotels on the sale of four of its high-end, luxury hotels: Grange St Paul's EC4, Grange Tower Bridge E1, Grange City EC3 and Grange Holborn WC1. The portfolio of properties was sold to Queensgate Investments for circa GBP 1 billion. This is one of the largest UK hotel deals on record.

The impressive property portfolio is made up of 1,345 Central London rooms, around 930,000 square feet of real estate, which was acquired and significantly expanded by Grange Hotels over the last 20 years. The four hotels acquired by Queensgate Investments are fully equipped with meeting and conference spaces, in addition to upscale spa and leisure facilities. Grange Hotels is one of London's largest privately held hotel groups which provides customers with an extensive range of 4-Star and 5-Star luxury accommodation in prime London locations. Following this transaction, the group will own and operate 13 hotels, primarily located in Central London.

The BCLP team advising Grange Hotels was led by Partner and Head of Real Estate Chris de Pury and Corporate Partner Adam Bogdanor. They were supported by Partner Laura Wild and Associates Emily Mickle and Caitlin Crawford on the real estate side and Associate Director Mimi Curran on the hotel management agreements. Partner Elizabeth Bradley, Senior Associate Andy West and Associate Alex Makinson also advised on the tax elements of the deal, and Associate Director Georgia Snaith and Associate Anita Soomrova advised on finance. Chandresh Bhatt and Senal Patel at Bishop & Sewell also advised Grange Hotels on certain real estate matters within the transaction and HFF Securities acted as exclusive financial adviser to the group.

Commenting on the successful deal, Chris de Pury, BCLP’s head of Real Estate, said:

“We have been advising on the restructuring of the portfolio for some time and the sale of the four hotels is the next significant milestone for Grange Hotels. The fact that it was achieved against a backdrop of huge political turmoil is a testament to the professionalism and resilience of all the parties involved but also shows the belief the international market still has in London as a key global investment destination.”

Queensgate Investments, a partnership between the Kow Family, LJ Partnership and Peterson Group, advises and manages around GBP 3 billion of assets. Queensgate Investments has an agreement with Fattal Hotel Group, a EUR 2 billion hospitality company with 200 hotels across 18 countries, to manage the newly secured assets. Brown Rudnick and EY advised Queensgate Investments on the deal.

About Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

With over 1,400 lawyers in 32 offices across North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP is a fully integrated global law firm that provides clients with connected legal advice, wherever and whenever they need it. The firm is known for its relationship-driven, collaborative culture, diverse legal experience and industry-shaping innovation and offers clients one of the most active M&A, real estate, financial services, litigation and corporate risk practices in the world.