Madrid, May 21, 2025. Grupo Hotusa, the leading hotel chain in Spain and ninth in the European stage by number of premises, has received two loans from COFIDES, amounting to €3.6M and €11.8M, to finance the acquisition in Italy of Orsa SRL (operator and owner of the Crisol Europa Palermo hotel), as well as the Eurostars Centrale Palace hotel, already operated by the company has since 2015.
These projects, to which the group will allocate a total investment of €5.2M and €16.9M, respectively, will reinforce its presence in the Italian market, where it has been present since 1999, managing 12 establishments under its Eurostars and Exe brands in destinations such as Rome, Florence, Naples and Venice.
Both operations consolidate Italy as the third most important destination for the Hotusa Group and strengthens the chain's international expansion strategy, which has already led it to establish itself in some twenty countries.
COFIDES financing will be provided through the Fund for Foreign Investment (FIEX), a financial instrument at the service of the internationalization of Spanish companies.
COFIDES corporate investment director, Miguel Ángel Ladero, stated that "walking together with an emblematic brand such as Hotusa in its international growth provides great satisfaction. This project strengthens Spain's brand image and affirms the excellent positioning and competitiveness of our hotel sector, a key player for the economy and employment in our country, which COFIDES has always supported."
For her part, the director of the expansion and financial area of Grupo Hotusa, Clara López, highlighted that "we are deeply grateful for the COFIDES’ support in this operation, representing a new step forward in our internationalization process. Their support has been key to consolidate the incorporation of this hotel and I would like to stress their valuable work in the projection and growth of Spanish talent and entrepreneurship abroad."
ABOUT GRUPO HOTUSA
Grupo Hotusa is a dynamic organization comprising a large number of companies related to the most diverse areas of the tourism sector. Grupo Hotusa, with more than 47 years of history, operates in more than 130 countries, has a workforce of more than 6,000 employees and in 2024 had a turnover of more than €1.5Bn.
The company is organized into 3 business units: Hotel services, integrated under the Keytel brand, which is the first consortium of independent hotels in the world with more than 3,600 associated hotels; distribution, which operates as Restel and markets more than 125,000 establishments on a global scale; and the hotel operations area, Eurostars Hotel Company, with a portfolio of more than 270 units in 21 countries.
ABOUT COFIDES
COFIDES is a state-owned trading company that manages financial funds from the Spanish State, as well as its own resources and those of third-party institutions with various objectives: the internationalization of the Spanish economy, the attraction of foreign investment into strategic sectors in Spain, the promotion of the impact economy in Spain, and the contribution to the development of the countries in which it invests. In addition to the State, which holds a majority position, other shareholders include Banco Santander, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA), Banco Sabadell, and CAF–Development Bank of Latin America.
