Calcutta, Oct. 12: Global private equity firm Xander Group Inc will pick up a 26 per cent stake in Sinclairs Hotels. The equity firm also has investments in Tata and Reliance projects in the country. Meridia Capital, a Spanish private equity firm with focus on hospitality, and Morgan Creek of the US will pick up another 9.69 per cent each in Sinclairs.

The Sinclairs board, which met yesterday, had approved the preferential allotments of shares and warrants to these investors to raise Rs 50 crore.

The shares and warrants will be issued at Rs 172 a share. One warrant will be converted into one share after 18 months.

Though the promoter group will invest Rs 2.32 crore along with the overseas investors, its stake will come down from 89.24 per cent to 48.97 per cent.

“We are very happy to have such investors in the company. The idea is to grow the business,” Navin Suchanti, CEO and managing director of Sinclairs, said.

The company now has five properties. They own and operate 300 rooms in Siliguri, Darjeeling, Chalsa (Dooars), Ooty and Port Blair. The company was working on an IPO but dropped the plan. The company will receive advice from the equity firms too. Xander and the others companies are poised to get board berth in Sinclairs.

“Even as Sinclairs is a minnow compared with other players, it has managed to get very high quality investors for itself,” an industry observer noted.

The Sinclairs stock closed at Rs 185, up 4.61 per cent, or Rs 8.15, on a day the sensex tanked 395 points, or 2.10 per cent.