JMK Group secures £17m facility for City office-to-hotel scheme
Grade II-listed office block off St Clement Lane to be converted into 185-room hotel
- What Oak North and REL Finance have provided a £16.6m loan to hospitality group JMK
- Why Funding will be used to acquire a five-storey office block off St Clement Lane, to be converted into a 185-room hotel
- What next Deal is OakNorth and JMK’s second transaction as funding partner
OakNorth bank and structured real estate lender REL Finance have agreed to provide a £16.6m facility to JMK Group for a City office-to-hotel conversion. The loan will be used to acquire a five-storey Grade II-listed office block off St Clement Lane and transform it into a new 185-room hotel, subject to planning
approval.
Zain Kajani, director at JMK Group, said: “We are constantly looking towards the future, with this acquisition of the St Clement Lane site a prime example of this, so we’re grateful to the OakNorth and REL Finance teams for their support in this transaction. Following the success of our initial transaction with OakNorth in August 2022, we knew they would once again be the right funding partner for us.”
Deepesh Thakrar, senior director of debt finance at OakNorth, said: “This transaction represented an exciting opportunity to facilitate a new deal with an existing customer, that has built up an excellent portfolio and track record for creating highly successful hotels, across the UK and Ireland. We look forward to continuing to support the group with its future growth, in particular with acquisitions of new assets to further strengthen its portfolio.”
Sumeer Bose, director at REL Finance, added: “REL Finance is dedicated to supporting prime sponsors in repurposing commercial real estate in prime locations within the UK. JMK is a prominent group with in-house capabilities to transform properties such as these. We are pleased to strengthen our existing relationship with OakNorth, whom we consider a strategic partner in CRE loans.”