Virgin Money’s hotel and real estate finance team has granted a £51m loan to allow Amano Group to refinance its Amano Hotel in London’s Covent Garden.
Located at Drury House, 34-43 Russell Street, WC2, the hotel is the flagship London property for the group. The loan will enable the company to optimise its capital structure and invest in the property.
Philip Rokeach, director of Amano Group, said: “This refinancing reflects the success of our maiden operation in London, and we look forward to working with Virgin Money for years to come as we expand the Amano Hotel brand here in London with additional acquisitions.”
Peter Upton, senior director for hotel finance at Virgin Money, said: “The group’s first UK hotel in Covent Garden is in a top location and has a first-class management team. We are delighted to support the Amano Group with this refinancing, underscoring our commitment to the hotel lending market in the UK.”
Excellion Capital advised Amano on this financing.
Investor confidence in hotels is high, driven by an improving outlook in the UK sector following the pause in interest rate hikes and the recent reduction to 4.75%. The UK hotel sector has experienced consistent post-pandemic growth, with annual revenue-based market size rising by 45% in 2022 and an additional 37% in 2023, according to data from IBIS World.
Total UK hotel market transactions in Q3 reached an estimated £626m, 54% up on the same period last year, and Savills’ projections indicate that year-end volumes will reach £5bn, returning activity to pre-pandemic levels.
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