Sancus Capital, the owner of Madrid’s luxury hotels Villa Magna and Bless, will take over the management of Millenium Hospitality, a hotel-focused real estate investment trust controlled by Castlelake, the North American investment firm. The agreement envisions Sancus acquiring a 10% stake in Millenium and elevating Borja Escalada, the head of Sancus, to the role of chief executive officer of Millenium.
The deal awaits approval at the upcoming shareholders meeting and includes a pledge that Sancus will direct any future luxury and ultra‑luxury hotel ventures in Spain through Millenium. Millenium’s filing notes that Sancus will exercise its best efforts to acquire up to 10% of the company at the last average trading price from the previous week, a figure that brings the total value of the operation to about €33 million and values the REIT at roughly €330 million.
Millenium’s board has also approved a contract for management services and strategic consulting with Sancus, aimed at the value creation and monetization of key assets and the identification of investment opportunities. The agreement is set for an initial three-year term and may be extended beyond that period.
Following Escalada’s appointment as chief executive, Luis Basagoiti, who succeeded Javier Illán and was removed from the company, will continue serving as non-executive chairman, according to statements from the company. A Sancus partner expressed strong enthusiasm for the alliance, saying it aims to transform Millenium into the leading reference in Europe’s luxury and ultra-luxury hotel sector and, in doing so, to lift value for the company’s shareholders. Basagoiti added that the alliance marks the start of a new phase that will reinforce the company’s strategy and value in a growing hospitality market.
Who Is Sancus Capital?
Sancus Capital is the fund led by Borja Escalada, the former chief executive of RLH Properties, a Mexican-listed company from which the Villa Magna and Bless hotels were propelled into Sancus ownership. The investment manager operates beyond real estate, with active positions in renewable energy and venture capital. Among its notable milestones, Sancus helped create one of Mexico’s largest publicly traded firms by market capitalization and backed major residential projects, including a development spanning more than 500 hectares in Playa del Carmen designed to yield thousands of homes.