PRESS RELEASE, Vienna, 16 February, 2016 - Binder Grösswang (together with the Hungarian law firm Lakatos, Köves and Partners) advised the Al Habtoor Group on the purchase of Hotel Imperial from companies of the Starwood Group. The purchase of the Imperial, one of the most famous historic hotels on Vienna’s Ringstraße, was transacted through a share deal, in which all the shares in Imperial Hotel Austria GmbH were acquired.
Hotel Imperial on Ringstraße in Vienna was built as the private residence of the Prince of Württemberg. It was transformed into a hotel for the Universal Exhibition in 1873 and soon became world-renowned. The Imperial’s guests have included – and still include – emperors, kings and statesmen as well as famous composers, authors and actors.
The Al Habtoor Group, with headquarters in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, has operations in the sectors of construction, hotels, the automotive industry, real estate, education and publishing.
The purchase of the shares was preceded by a comprehensive due diligence analysis as well as legal consultations on tax and corporate law issues concerning the establishment of the new shareholder structure. The contracts were signed on 27 January and the transaction was closed on 15 February 2016.
Binder Grösswang’s core team was composed of Michael Kutschera, Markus Uitz (both partners, Corporate/M&A) and Philipp Kapl (associate, Corporate/M&A). Also involved in the transaction were: Christian Wimpissinger (partner, Tax), Horst Lukanec (partner, Employment), Michael Pinggera (attorney, Public Law), Michael Ebner, Mona Holzgruber, Oliver Loksa and Quido Gero (associates, Corporate/M&A), Sabine Apfl (associate, Employment), Hanna Oberbichler and Regina Kröll (associates, Public Law).