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Pickalbatros has closed USD 250 mn in sustainability-linked financing from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Attijariwafa Bank to fund its Morocco expansion, adviser Zilla Capital said in a statement (pdf), calling it the largest IFC-backed hospitality financing in Morocco’s history, and the group’s own.
It’s a dual-currency package split into three tranches, and it covers Pickalbatros’ recent acquisitions (the Sofitel Casablanca Tour Blanche and the Mövenpick Hotel Casablanca), sustainability work and upgrades at its Marrakech and Agadir hotels, and the refinancing of existing debt over longer maturities, giving the group more room to repay.
The IFC’s project disclosure tells a different story on size. It lists an IFC A-loan of up to USD 165 mn alongside USD 135 mn mobilized from B/parallel lenders, for USD 300 mn of debt against a USD 386 mn program. Yet the same document describes IFC’s investment as “up to USD 200 mn.” That’s three different figures in one disclosure.
REMEMBER- The package has grown since we last checked in. Pickalbatros got approval in June for USD 200 mn in World Bank Group-backed financing for its Morocco expansion, putting the final signed package USD 50 mn above the amount previously flagged. The Casablanca acquisitions were already moving at the time: Pickalbatros filed to acquire the 184-key Mövenpick Casablanca in May, around a month after buying the Sofitel Casablanca Tour Blanche for USD 47 mn.
Nine hotels and counting: Pickalbatros pledged USD 140 mn to expand in Morocco back in 2023 and had grown to seven hotels and 2.6k rooms by September 2024, which rose to over 2.7k rooms across nine hotels as of this October, according to Zilla’s statement. Four hotel acquisitions that year were followed by the two Casablanca additions in 2026. The group has now invested more than USD 400 mn in Morocco, Asharq Business reports, citing founder and Chairman Kamel Abou Aly.
ADVISORS- Zilla Capital acted as exclusive financial adviser to Pickalbatros, while ADNA served as the group’s legal counsel. Clifford Chance advised IFC and Attijariwafa Bank. The transaction also marks the formal launch of Zilla Capital’s operations in Morocco.
