Abu Dhabi Royal’s Firm to Buy Stake in Caring Hospitality Empire

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(Bloomberg) — An unit of Abu Dhabi royal Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s investment conglomerate is acquiring a majority stake in Richard Caring’s hospitality empire, which includes some of the UK’s most iconic brands such as the Ivy restaurants chain and private members’ club Annabel’s. 

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As part of the deal, DIAFA — an affiliate of International Holding Co, the investment firm chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon, the brother of the United Arab Emirates’ ruler — will acquire a stake in the business that also runs the luxury restaurant portfolio of Caprice Holdings, which owns Sexy Fish, Scott’s and Noema, according to a statement on Saturday. 

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The “ten-figure” deal also includes Caring’s other private members’ clubs in London like George, Harry’s Bar and Mark’s Club, the company said.   

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The investment from IHC is worth more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion), according to a person familiar with the matter. 

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Caring will remain executive chairman and will together with DIAFA lead the business’s next phase of expansion globally, the company said. 

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A British businessman, Caring built his fortune in fashion before pivoting into high-end property and hospitality, assembling one of London’s most valuable leisure portfolios. His strategy has centered on acquiring legacy brands and scaling them, most notably expanding The Ivy from a single celebrity haunt into a nationwide chain of more than 40 sites.

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The transaction will add to DIAFA’s existing F&B portfolio, which includes brands such as the Azumi Group’s Zuma and Roka, and the h.wood Group that includes Delilah, The Nice Guy and Bird Streets Club. It is the latest for the investment conglomerate IHC, which has emerged in recent years as the largest listed company in the UAE with a market value of about $232 billion, helping drive Abu Dhabi’s global dealmaking push. 

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For Caring, nicknamed the “King of Mayfair” for his iconic assets in the city, the transaction provides an exit route as well as further capital to expand the business footprint globally. 

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Earlier this year, IHC said it was creating a new financial-services holding company, Judan Financial, that will oversee about 870 billion dirhams ($237 billion) in assets. That followed a move by the conglomerate to merge three units to create an investing behemoth with $33 billion in assets spanning finance, consumer and energy spread across 85 countries. 

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In addition to his role at the conglomerate, Sheikh Tahnoon oversees a vast empire spanning a wealth fund, the region’s most important private investment firm, the country’s largest lender and its main main artificial intelligence investor, MGX.

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More broadly, the region is showcasing a continued appetite for dealmaking despite the ongoing war. Investors including Qatar Investment Authority and Mubadala Investment Co. joined Whoop’s latest funding round, while Savvy Games Group, a unit of the Saudi Public Investment Fund, agreed to buy Moonton from ByteDance. The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority has also been active, while the QIA and a Bahraini aluminum producer announced large transactions in the first week of the conflict.

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Officials have sought to underline that momentum will hold. The UAE’s ambassador to the US said the country’s $1.4 trillion investment framework with America remains on track, while executives at Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund have reiterated plans to continue deploying capital globally despite rising economic risks tied to the war.

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