Irish Private Investment Group Sets Sights on More London Property

Jason Corcoran

16 July 2007

Irish investment firm Quinlan Private is interested in buying the hotel operating business Malmaison and Hotel du Vin from property firm Marylebone Warwick Balfour Group. A report in the Sunday Telegraph suggested the price for the businesses could reach over £700 million. MWB said on Friday that it had started talks over a possible sale of the businesses, adding that any discussions were at a very early stage. On 2 July MWB said it had appointed Bank of America to sell the property assets of Malmaison and Hotel du Vin, after failing to sell them in June to Vector Hospitality for at least £495 million pounds. Quinlan, headed by former tax inspector Derek Quinlan recently paid more than £677 million for the 20-strong Jurys Inn hotel chain and manages more than €10 billion worth of global property assets.