Former Greene King boss Rooney Anand has secured a £200 mln (€230 mln) equity investment from US-based investment firm Oaktree for a new investment venture targeting pub sites across the UK.
Anand, who led pub group Green King as chief executive officer until 2019, said that the new venture will seek to partner with licensees, publicans and entrepreneurs to help support the recovery of the sector, which has been hit hard by coronavirus restrictions.
The RedCat Pub company is to start with a focus on buying tenanted pub estates, as well as retail pubs in the East, South East and South of the UK. Anand will be RedCat’s executive chairman.
‘I’ve always been a strong believer in the great British pub,’ Anand said. ‘It has survived the Blitz, the Great Plague and the Credit Crunch – always bouncing back and taking its rightful place at the heart of the community. We want to partner with talented licensees and entrepreneurs to give them the support, capital and help they need to thrive.’
Rothschild and Peel Hunt acted as advisers to RedCat Pub Company.
