Blackstone is preparing an initial public offering (IPO) of Hotel Investment Partners (HIP), with the Spanish hotel platform expected to begin trading between late October and early November. According to Cinco Días, cited by Reuters, the US investment firm is preparing the documentation for submission to Spain's National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) in early October.
HIP, headquartered in Barcelona, owns a portfolio of 61 hotels and around 20,000 rooms across Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece, valued at approximately €6 billion.
Blackstone currently holds a 65% stake in HIP, with Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC owning the remaining 35%. Blackstone is targeting the disposal of its stake through the IPO, which would also include a capital increase of around €700 million.
The process is being supported by Santander, Morgan Stanley, Citi, BNP Paribas and Goldman Sachs, among other banks.
Blackstone has been exploring different options to exit HIP since last year, including a potential sale of its stake to GIC. The US investment firm acquired HIP from Banco Sabadell in 2017.
