Uría Menéndez advises Belmond and Omega Capital on its sale of the Ritz Hotel in Madrid

Hotel Ritz Madrid, S.A. has been sold to a joint venture formed by the Saudi conglomerate the Olayan Group and the Hong-Kong based Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group.

Uría Menéndez has advised Omega Capital, S.L. and the international hotel company Belmond Ltd. (formerly known as Orient-Express Hotels Ltd.) on the sale of their respective stakes in Hotel Ritz Madrid, S.A., which owns the emblematic Ritz Hotel in Madrid. The buyer is a joint venture formed by the Saudi conglomerate the Olayan Group, and the Hong-Kong based Mandarin Oriental Hotel group, which will assume the management of the hotel.

The transaction has been valued at around EUR 130 million. The Ritz Hotel has been a symbol of luxury since it first opened in Madrid in 1910. Belmond, the hotel and entertainment group (whose parent company is listed in the New York Stock Exchange) and Omega Capital (Ms. Alicia Koplowitz’s investment company) acquired a majority stake in Hotel Ritz Madrid, S.A. in 2003. The Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group currently operates 26 luxury hotels in 24 countries and the transnational Olayan Group holds investments in various industrial sectors, mainly in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East.

The transaction was signed in Madrid on 21 May 2015. The legal team at Uría Menéndez which took part in this transaction was led by Ramiro Rivera (partner, Finance, Madrid), who was assisted by Diana Linage Gómez (associate, M&A-Private Equity, Madrid) and Luis Gonzaga Knörr Gomeza (first-year lawyer, Finance, Madrid). The Olayan and Mandarin Oriental groups have been advised by DLA Piper.

Uría Menéndez is a leading law firm in the Ibero-American market with 16 offices located in the most important financial centres in Europe, the Americas and Asia. Founded in 1946, it has over 550 lawyers who advise on Spanish, Portuguese and EU law in business-related matters and covers the full spectrum of industry sectors.