The hotel was owned by Patrick Maugein, a Corrèze businessman close to Jacques Chirac who made his fortune as a broker in Africa and Arab countries before chairing Soco, an oil company based in London. The heirs of this former great French fortune, who died in 2006, then sold the hotel to Robert Keane, head of the Cimpress group (turnover $3 billion). James Dyson restored it in 2019 to accommodate one of his children and completely renovated it in a contemporary style.
The new owner is expected to be one of the sons of former Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassem Al-Thani, nicknamed “HBJ”, a strongman from Doha until Emir Tamim took power in 2013. The buyer was represented by Lebanese lawyer Fady Bakhos, a close adviser, for this transaction his father. As stated on the website GlitzThe Lebanese also oversaw the purchase of part of the “Isle Saint-Germain”, sold by the French state in 2019, to HBJ for 368 million euros. Owned by the wealthy Qatari-owned Constellation Group, the seven buildings are set to house a 115-room palace under the Maybourne Hotels brand by 2026.