£1bn luxury yacht deal nets Brian Souter £100m

Sir Brian Souter made a healthy profit from his part in a consortium which bought and sold luxury yacht-maker Sunseeker. Picture: complimentary

The Stagecoach co-founder and chairman was the single largest investor in Dorset-based Sunseeker through his Souter Investments vehicle.

Beijing-based Dalian Wanda Group has agreed to pay £320m for a 92 per cent stake in the UK’s largest luxury yacht business. Other investors to benefit from the sale include golf ace Rory McIlroy and Australia’s Macquarie Bank.

All were members of a consortium which bought a majority share of the then-troubled boat maker for just £25m in a deal led by Dublin-based private equity group FL Partners in 2010.

Dalian, controlled by former Communist Party of China member Wang Jianlin, has splashed out £1 billion on UK assets. In addition to Sunseeker, he will invest £700m in the development of a luxury five-star Wanda Hotel on London’s South Bank.

Wang, thought to be China’s third richest person, said: “With the committed support of Wanda, Sunseeker is well placed to take full advantage of opportunities in China, one of the world’s fastest-growing luxury yacht markets.”

Production at the yacht maker, whose vessels have featured in four James Bond movies, will remain at its sites in Poole and Portland.

Souter said: “This is a welcome announcement. Sunseeker already exports nearly 100 per cent of its yachts. Wanda will be a wonderful partner, particularly in helping it unlock the substantial potential inherent in the developing Chinese boating market.”

The deal marks a bonanza for the canny group of investors who acquired the stake in Sunseeker at a rockbottom price and who have been able to benefit from the hunger for luxury assets fuelled by the rise in Asian wealth.

Souter adds profits made on the Sunseeker deal to the return on investment he made on the sale of insurance group Esure in March. Although his stake was undisclosed, investors raised more than £600m in a stock market flotation that valued the firm at £1.2bn. Souter had joined in with a consortium of investors in a £190m management buyout led by the Glasgow-based private equity fund manager Penta Capital 2010.

Coinciding with yesterday’s sale of the yacht business, Souter Investments is pumping €12m (£10m) into new coaches for his Polish bus company, PolskiBus.com.

Souter launched the company two years ago, starting with 18 vehicles. By the end of the year it will have 92 coaches operating an inter-city service in Poland, the company said.

The new buses are being made by Belgian’s Van Hool, rather than Falkirk-based Alexander Dennis, in which Souter Investments is understood to still hold a stake.

Souter added: “PolskiBus.com has been a tremendous success. Passengers love our prices, comfort, convenient schedules and quality service.

“We have ambitious plans for the future and will continue to expand PolskiBus.com in Poland and elsewhere in Eastern Europe.”

His eponymous investment firm also holds Souter’s stake in Stagecoach. In 2011, the investor led a deal to acquire the Turkish ferry business Istanbul Deniz Otonuslen for £528m.