Blackstone Group LP, the world’s biggest private equity firm, has bought UK hotel chain Mint Hotels for £600m.
Blackstone, which also owns the Hilton Worldwide chain of hotels, will take over Mint’s seven UK four-star hotels including two in London (at Westminster and Tower of London) and one in Amsterdam.
Mint Hotels will be rebranded within Double Tree by Hilton and Hilton Garden Inn brands. Hilton is seeking to add 100 more hotels to its network through 2014.
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Mint was founded in 1995 as “City Inn”, rebranding last year to its new name. It was put up for sale by Lloyds Banking Group and the hotel chain’s co-founder David Orr in January this year.
Speaking about the sale to Blackstone, Orr told the Wall Street Journal: “After nearly 16 years spent building Mint into the brand that it now is, a transaction has been agreed that gives the business a new future.
“In Blackstone, the business now has a global investor with a strong and expansive track record in the hospitality sector. We feel confident that they will continue to manage the hotels in a manner that is true to its business identity,” he added.
Separately, Blackstone is negotiating with less than five parties for a potential £500m sale of its Nido student accommodation portfolio.
Nido includes the world’s tallest accommodation block in Spitalfields, east London, and a 277-bed site in Notting Hill, which are reportedly worth about £200m and £45m, respectively.
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