Tag: Hogan Lovells

Axiare Raises €144M In Financing To Fund New Acquisitions

23 December 2016 – Expansión

Axiare Patrimonio has closed four financing agreements, with ING, CaixaBank and BBVA, amounting to €144 million. The Socimi led by Luis López de Herrera-Oria has said that it will allocate these resources to new acquisitions and the active management of its real estate portfolio.

These loans have an average term of 7.3 years; an average total financing cost of 1.5%; and 95% of the principal will be repaid on maturity, according to the firm. Axiare also highlighted that the agreements do not stipulate any penalties in the event of early cancelation. They raise the company’s gross leverage ratio to 44%.

Since its creation in July 2014, the Socimi, which focuses on offices and logistics, has closed financing agreements amounting to €538 million.

For these operations, Axiare Patrimonio has been advised by Gómez-Acebo y Pombo.

ING Bank has been advised by Hogan Lovells; CaixaBank by Uría Menéndez; and BBVA has used its own internal legal experts.

The CEO of Axiare Patrimonio, Luis López de Herrera-Oria, has said that these financing agreements reflect “the quality of the current portfolio and the trust in our management team”. “These agreements are further proof that Axiare Patrimonio remains firmly committed to fulfilling its business plan. We are approaching the end of 2016 with a very good outlook”, said the director.

Axiare has been very active in recent months. The Socimi’s assets are worth around €1,230 million and it has invested €275 million in total during 2016.

Original story: Expansión (by R.Arroyo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Leonardo Hotels Buys Its Third Establishment In Madrid

29 September 2016 – Hosteltur

Leonardo Hotels is continuing its expansion in the Spanish capital with the acquisition of its third hotel, the Gran Atlanta Madrid, which will be incorporated into its portfolio from 30 September. According to Hosteltur, Gran Atlanta will join two other properties that the largest group in Israel bought in July. The Gran Atlanta Hotel is a four-star property and has 180 rooms, as well as five meeting rooms, with capacity for up to 100 people, and a restaurant.

A determining factor in the acquisition of the hotel has been its prime location, right in the heart of the financial and business district of the city. It is close to the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium and is well-connected by public transport, both in terms of local trains (Cercanías) and the Metro, which allow guests to travel quickly from Nuevos Ministerios to the centre or to the airport in just 15 minutes.

The Hotel Gran Atlanta Madrid will retain its current name until the renovation work has been completed. The refurbishment is due to take place between April and the autumn of 2017, when the property will adopt the Leonardo Hotels brand name. The international law firm Hogan Lovells has provided legal advice once again in an operation that has been advised by Planet Hotels & Resorts.

According to the Director General of Leonardo Hotels for Europe, Daniel Roger, “the decision to acquire another property in Madrid was not hard when we found the Hotel Gran Atlanta. Our success is based on our strategy of owning several hotels in Europe’s major cities and on the synergies that that approach generates. Naturally, the building’s potential and its excellent location have also been decisive factors.

The firm now has five hotels in the Spanish market, two in Barcelona (Leonardo Hotels made its debut in Barcelona with the Boutique Hotel Sagrada Familia) and three in Madrid. Roger added, “this represents a boost, in a short period of time, which makes our offer even more attractive and allows us to develop and strengthen our position in Spain ever further. We will continue our growth soon with more acquisitions here (in Spain) as well as in other countries in Europe”.

Leonardo Hotels is the European division of the Fattal Hotels Group, founded by David Fattal in Israel. It has operated in the European market since 2007 and owns more than 65 establishments in the superior 3-star and superior 4-star categories in more than 35 cities aross the continent, in countries such as Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, the UK, Spain, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Italy and the Netherlands. In total, its properties have more than 10,000 rooms and 20,500 sqm of space for meetings and conferences.

Original story: Hosteltur

Translation: Carmel Drake