2024 Programme
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FHS Saudi Arabia 2022
FHS Saudi Arabia 2023
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12 - 14 May 2025
Mandarin Oriental Al Faisaliah, Riyadh
Profile
Bilal Ambikapathy
Founding Partner
Wisefields
Bilal Ambikapathy is a partner specializing in real estate and hotels. He previously lead Baker McKenzie's real estate and hotels practice in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar for 14 years. He has a commercial practice focusing on domestic and international hotel projects and real estate transactions, principally in Saudi Arabia and the broader Middle East and North Africa region. Bilal has negotiated over 120 hotel management agreements for hotel owners against all the world's leading international hotel operators. Bilal regularly acts for investment banks on the formation of real estate funds and REITs in Saudi Arabia and on the acquisition and disposal of assets owned by funds. Bilal has been involved in the establishment of funds in Saudi Arabia since the inception of the Real Estate Investment Fund regulations and has direct experience of how the approach to funds has evolved over time, both in terms of regulation and market sentiment. Selective projects Acting for Diriyah Gate Development Authority in negotiations with international hotel operators for the management, operation and sale of 32 hotels and branded residences across the Diriyah Gate, Wadi Safar and Wadi Hanifa masterplans. Acting for Diriyah Gate Development Authority in the negotiation of the branded residence documentation and subsequent governance and sale documentation for the following branded residences: • Raffles • Aman • Baccarat • Corinthia • Ritz Carlton • Oberoi • Armani • Fauchon • Address • Acting for Thakher Development Company in negotiations with Accor for three Novotel branded hotel towers and a branded residence tower to be developed in Thakher City, Makkah. • Acting for Thakher Development Company in negotiations with Address Hotels & Resorts for an Address hotel and residence to be developed in Thakher City, Makkah • Acting for Thakher Development Company in negotiations with Radisson for a Radisson and a Park Inn branded hotels to be developed in Thakher City, Makkah. • Acting for Thakher Development Company in the negotiation of the Novotel Residences in Thakher City, Makkah, Saudi Arabia. • Acting for Umm Al Qura Development Company in the structuring of branded residences towers in the King Abdulaziz Road Development, Makkah. • Advising Umm Al Qura Construction and Development Company on aspects of the governance and sale of its Kempinski branded residences in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. • Acting for a Saudi Investment Company in the establishment of a single unitholder fund to undertake the acquisition of a large number of plots within the Umm Al Qura development in Makkah and the subsequent development of 4 hotels and 2 shopping malls on some of the plots. • Advising Knowledge Economic City, a listed Saudi Arabian developer, on a portfolio deal of up to 36 hotels in Madinah. Thus far we have advised opposite 6 international hotel companies on the full scope of hotel management documentation. These hotels will be located across the knowledge economic city masterplan, in particular the groundbreaking Islamic World District, a unique mixed-use hospitality, retail and residential project located next to the Madinah Al Haramain Railway Station. • Representation of Jabal Omar Development Company (JODC) on the largest hotel deal in the world in Q1 2017, Alinma Bank’s USD$ 1.6 billion purchase of three Makkah hotels and a retail property. • Represented Jabal Omar Development Company on the PPP form of concession of its district energy requirements at its USD5.5bn mixed-use development at Makkah Al-Mukarramah.
See Bilal Ambikapathy speak in the following sessions:
Wednesday 01 May: 12:25 - 12:50
Strategies for Success in Delivering Mega Projects in Holy CitiesWednesday 01 May: 12:50 - 13:15
ENSURING THE LONG-TERM VIABILITY OF RELIGIOUS TOURISM