Abu Dhabi-based Eagle Hills and Italy’s Coima SGR have launched a dedicated vehicle to finance and lead the restoration of an Italian hotel, according to a press release. The Coima Des Bains Fund, backed by Coima’s ESG City Impact Fund and Eagle Hills, will finance the redevelopment of Venice’s Grand Hôtel des Bains.

The fund will invest some EUR 200 mn into the hotel’s restoration and modernization, with the investment marking Eagle Hills’ first foray into the Italian market.

Ownership structure: Italian real estate manager Coima SGR now controls the asset through its acquisition of 100% of the hotel’s outstanding debt, including a EUR 54 mn loan secured against the hotel, and will lead the restoration and repositioning of the property as a high-end resort. The loan was purchased from Intesa Sanpaolo and Altea SPV, with Christofferson, Robb & Company as noteholder and Prelios Credit Servicing as servicer.

More investors in the pipeline: Italian entrepreneur Federico Marchetti, founder of YOOX Net-A-Porter, also joined the fund as a minority investor through his firm Mavis. COIMA and Eagle Hills are also exploring the possibility of opening the fund to additional institutional and professional investors to support broader regeneration efforts across the Lido.

Eagle Hills is expanding its European footprint, having submitted top bids for 20 beach leases in Montenegro and pushing ahead with USD 6 bn in projects in Georgia and a USD 1.4 bn Trump-branded tower in Serbia. However, it is also facing growing protectionist pushback in parts of Europe, most recently withdrawing plans for a high-rise project in Budapest due to local opposition.

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