Kingdom Holding sells stake in Four Seasons Beirut: report

Tadawul-listed Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) has sold its stake in the Four Seasons Hotel in Beirut for around $100-115 million including debt, Reuters reported on Monday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The buyer is a Saudi businessman of Lebanese origin, one source said, adding that the deal was done in December.

Sources also told Reuters that the hotel had been up for sale for a long time and was not linked to the detention of Kingdom Holding chairman Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal in the anti-corruption purge that took place in November.

The Four Seasons management company will continue to operate the hotel.

Meanwhile, the sale of Beirut’s Movenpick hotel – in which Kingdom Holding also has a stake – is also ongoing.

Negotiations with a potential buyer have begun, the source said.

Blominvest, the investment arm of Lebanon’s Blom Bank, advised on the sale, it was reported.

Kingdom Holding is also selling other assets across the Middle East and Africa as part of its business strategy, and not as a result of what is happening in Saudi Arabia, a source said.