European budget hotel operator easyHotel recently confirmed that it is considering various options for a possible sale, as the company continues to expand across Europe.
Founded in 2004 by Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the founder of low-cost airline easyJet, easyHotel currently operates a network of 49 hotels in 11 countries, with around a third of its properties located in the UK. This network includes 17 franchised hotels with 1,250 rooms, as well as 32 owned or leased hotels with over 3,500 rooms, including sites such as easyHotel Paris Nord Aubervilliers and easyHotel Basel.
Today, easyHotel is in discussions with a number of potential buyers, with N M Rothschild & Sons acting as exclusive advisor to the company in this transaction.
According to SkyNews, the potential deal to sell easyHotel could value the company at around £400 million ($529 million). Among the suitors for the acquisition, TPG, a global investment company, has been shortlisted alongside a number of other bidders. Proprium Capital Partners, a property fund, has also reportedly expressed an interest in acquiring easyHotel, although it remains unclear whether it has made it through to the second round of bidding.
easyHotel's main shareholders, ICAMAP and Ivanhoe Cambridge, which hold a 79% stake, invested in the company shortly before the pandemic, valuing it at around $170 million at the time.
A company spokesperson said:
‘As we continue to expand with new hotels, our major shareholders, ICAMAP and Ivanhoe Cambridge, are exploring new financing options to support our future growth, which may include new investors as well as other options. This is an exciting step as we prepare for our next phase of growth.’
