New York, United States:
Microsoft founder Bill Gates’ investment fund reached a deal to obtain a controlling stake in the luxury hotel chain Four Seasons for $2.2 billion, the providers announced Wednesday.
Under the deal, Cascade Investments, a private investment firm holding Gates’ assets, will raise its holding in Four Seasons Hotel and Resorts to 71.25 % from 47.5 % by getting half of the stake belonging to Kingdom Holding Company of Saudi Arabia.
The transaction signifies the Canadian organization general has an enterprise worth of $10 billion, Four Seasons stated in the news release.
Founded in 1960 by Isadore Sharp, Four Seasons now has 121 hotels and resorts, and 46 residential properties in 47 nations.
The organization entered public markets in 1997 but undertook a transaction to go private in 2007 beneath an agreement in between Cascade, KHC and Sharp, who now holds 5 % of the organization.
Gates has been in the spotlight following he and Melinda French Gates announced in May they have been divorcing following 27 years.
He has been beneath scrutiny more than his association with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself although awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking minors.
Gates described his ties with Epstein as a “huge mistake” in an August interview with CNN.
KHC, which was founded in 1980 and became publicly listed in 2007, holds interests in other luxury hotel brands, such as the Savoy Hotel in London and The Plaza in New York. It also has investments in ride sharing, e-commerce, petrochemicals and wellness care.
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