Regis Maybourne (UK) Ltd and Selene SARL, a subsidiary of Constellation Hotels Holding Limited, announced on 21 August 2026 a new ownership and management framework for their shared portfolio of luxury hotels.
A split that settles fifteen years of joint ownership
The Maybourne group, formerly Savoy Hotel Group, has been jointly held since 2015 by these two shareholder families. This two-headed structure had already generated one of the most widely reported shareholder disputes in luxury hospitality, pitting Irish businessman Paddy McKillen against members of the Qatari royal family over the valuation of his initial stake.
The new ownership framework, separate from that dispute, does however clarify the ownership of the assets, at a time when the group had already seen several governance changes, notably Roland Fasel’s departure from his role as Chief Operating Officer earlier this year.
Who keeps what: the division of assets
Regis Maybourne (UK) Ltd becomes sole owner of Maybourne, the ultra-luxury hospitality company, and retains Claridge’s in London, the flagship of the portfolio, as well as The Maybourne Riviera in the south of France and The Maybourne Beverly Hills in California.
Constellation Hotels, for its part, retains the emblematic and ultra-luxury properties that are The Connaught, The Emory and The Berkeley in London. The entity also keeps control of the group’s international developments, including the future Saint-Germain hotel in Paris as well as an announced development in Marrakech. Existing hotel management agreements remain in force, with Maybourne continuing to operate the entire portfolio for a contractually defined period. Ownership of the underlying hotel assets otherwise remains unchanged, with only the shareholding structure evolving.
Regis Maybourne (UK) Ltd and Constellation Hotels state that they remain jointly committed to preserving the remarkable heritage, exceptional service standards and outstanding guest experiences for which these iconic properties are renowned.
A reshuffled governance structure
The split comes alongside a reshuffle at the head of both entities. Marc Socker remains Chief Executive Officer of Maybourne.
Gianluca Muzzi, who had until now held the position of Co-Chief Executive Officer of the group, is stepping down from that role to take up the position of Chief Executive Officer of Constellation Hotels. Further appointments relating to hotel operations will be announced shortly, according to the statement issued by the two shareholders.
Marc Socker said: “For many years, under joint ownership, Maybourne has operated a remarkable portfolio of hotels, properties that define the standards of ultra-luxury hospitality around the world. Although we are no longer co-owners, we remain partners, and I want to be clear with our teams, our guests, our suppliers and our industry colleagues: nothing changes in the way these hotels are operated or experienced, nor in Maybourne’s commitment to excellence.”
This governance reshuffle comes just days after the appointment of José Silva, former Chief Executive Officer of Jumeirah Group between 2018 and 2022 and with more than two decades at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, as Chairman of Maybourne.
Unified operation, but for a limited period
Both groups have been careful to specify that existing hotel management agreements remain in force, with Maybourne continuing to operate the entire portfolio, including the hotels now owned by Constellation, but for a contractually defined and non-permanent period. This transitional clause is intended to ensure operational continuity and the guest experience while each shareholder builds its own management organisation.
According to some industry experts, it is “a fair bet” that, over time, these hotels, while retaining their own identity, will join the portfolio of an international operator closely linked to Constellation….
For the international luxury hotel market, this shareholding clarification comes at a pivotal moment in the group’s development, as Constellation prepares to open its Paris hotel and a project is announced in Marrakech. It also marks the end of a co-ownership model that, for more than a decade, had maintained a degree of governance ambiguity between two shareholders whose interests sometimes diverged.
A possible reading of the restructuring
Neither Regis Maybourne (UK) Ltd nor Constellation Hotels have detailed the strategic reasoning behind this new ownership structure. Several interpretations can nonetheless be put forward, as hypotheses from the editorial team rather than motivations confirmed by the parties.
The first relates to brand and commercial development strategy. By clarifying ownership of each asset, the deal could pave the way for a gradual specialisation of the two entities: on one side, a residential or mixed-use segment driven by the Maybourne brand itself, along the lines of the Saint-Germain project in Paris, which already combines a palace-style hotel with branded private residences (with a conversion perhaps to come for The Maybourne Riviera?); on the other, a more conventionally hotel-focused segment, where properties could eventually be handed over to the operation of international hotel groups, following the model of the ultra-luxury brands such groups already operate. This hypothesis, however, remains to be confirmed, as no such announcement has been made by either shareholder.
A second reading fits within the competitive context of the international palace hotel and ultra-luxury segment, marked in recent years by intensifying competition between independent groups and major international brands. Clearer governance, with a single shareholder per asset, could facilitate faster investment decisions in the face of this growing competitive pressure.
As for the impact of this split on the dispute between Paddy McKillen and the group’s Qatari interests, this remains, at this stage, more uncertain. The arbitration award of £700–800 million (approximately €817–934 million) obtained in 2025 concerns Claridge’s, The Connaught and The Berkeley, three properties that the new division now separates between two distinct shareholders. While this configuration mechanically alters the structure of legal exposure, nothing to date indicates that this was an objective sought by the parties, who have made no comment to that effect.
At a glance by The Hospitality Tribune
Maybourne Group agrees new ownership structure, announced 21 August 2026
Regis Maybourne (UK) Ltd becomes sole owner of Claridge’s, The Maybourne Riviera and The Maybourne Beverly Hills
Constellation Hotels retains The Connaught, The Berkeley, The Emory, plus the Paris Saint-Germain and Marrakech projects
Existing hotel management arrangements remain in place, with Maybourne operating the full portfolio for an agreed period
Marc Socker remains CEO of Maybourne; Gianluca Muzzi returns from Co-CEO of Maybourne to lead Constellation Hotels
Further hospitality operational appointments to be announced shortly
José Silva, former Jumeirah Group CEO, was appointed Chairman of Maybourne days before the announcement
