The owner of one of London’s biggest hotels is ending a six-year stay by putting it up for sale with a price-tag expected to reach more than £500m.

Sky News has learnt that Henderson Park, a real estate investor, is close to hiring advisers for the sale of the Hilton London Metropole hotel near Paddington.

Its sister hotel in Birmingham is also expected to be included in the sale process, industry sources said on Thursday.

The auction will provide a key test of investors’ appetite for large hotel assets during a period of uncertainty for the UK economy.

Henderson Park acquired the two Metropole venues in 2017, and then swooped four years later to buy a portfolio of 12 other Hilton hotels in the British Isles.

The latter transaction included sites in Bristol, Dublin, Edinburgh and London.

The Hilton Metropole in London has 1,100 rooms and event space for 3,000 guests, making it one of the largest such venues in Europe.

Read more from business:
Cost of living crisis triggering wave of workplace crime
Heathrow annual losses halve as pandemic recovery gathers speed

Henderson Park has deployed $13bn on deals since being set up in 2016 by Nick Weber, a former Goldman Sachs executive.

It also invests in office blocks and industrial real estate.

A Henderson Park spokesman declined to comment.

Related posts:

Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world – now things could get even worse John Lewis and Waitrose owner hires thousands more temporary workers ahead of Christmas Wagamama owner warns of price rises as it becomes latest to flag supply chain pressures Pubs industry veteran Findlay to chair Magners owner C&C Group Co-op warns profits under pressure due to supply chain challenges Paddy Power owner reveals £60m hit from ‘run of customer-friendly’ sports betting results Deforestation pledge, renewable energy and Google’s carbon footprint COP26: Away from summit, global demand for oil and gas means BP remains a ‘cash machine’ Leap in card spending on fuel as motoring costs hit new records daily after Ukraine invasion Tesco sales fall amid ‘incredibly challenging’ inflationary environment Russia could take 10 years to recover from sanctions, says boss of country’s largest bank Power blackout prevention scheme which could earn households £100 approved