Gregorio Jiménez is assembling a majority bloc for Restaurant Brands Europe. The proposed deal could value the group at up to €2.5 billion including debt.
Cinven has controlled Restaurant Brands Europe since 2021 and doubled its size to 1,442 restaurants across Spain, Portugal and Italy. The company is now at the centre of a new takeover plan after Mubadala's exclusive negotiations collapsed.
Gregorio Jiménez, RBE's president and second-largest shareholder with more than 20% of the capital, is discussing an alliance with the family of Iberdrola chairman Ignacio Sánchez Galán and the Costa Cerezuela family. The group wants to build a controlling bloc with 51% of RBE and bring in other investors for the remaining 49%.
That structure would value the business at between €2.1 billion and €2.5 billion including debt. The equity portion would be around €1 billion. Peninsula Capital, where Borja Prado is one of the managing partners, and Corporación Financiera Alba are among the investors interested in joining the transaction.
Restaurant Brands International сообщала почти о $49 млрд системных продаж, более чем 33 тыс. ресторанов и присутствии более чем в 120 странах. В её портфель входят Burger King, Tim Hortons, Popeyes и Firehouse Subs.
The proposed ownership model would spread the financing without giving up majority control.
Mubadala could still return as a minority shareholder. The sovereign investor tried to acquire RBE during the summer but did not complete the purchase. Cinven entered exclusive negotiations with Mubadala after groups including Apollo, Meritage, KKR, CVC and TDR showed interest.
The problem was not a shortage of buyers. Restaurant Brands International, Burger King's parent company, opposed the transaction and must approve any change in RBE's majority ownership. That requirement ended the Mubadala deal in July and now sits at the centre of the new proposal.
По данным RBI, во втором квартале 2026 года сопоставимые продажи выросли на 3,8%, системные продажи — на 6,4%, а чистый рост числа ресторанов составил 2,9%. Эти показатели относятся к материнской группе и не являются финансовыми результатами RBE.
RBE has become a valuable asset in RBI's franchise network. Its revenue has passed €2 billion, and the group has kept double-digit growth while producing some of the strongest margins among RBI's master franchises.
That scale helps explain the interest from financial groups and prominent Spanish investors. The prospective buyers are not simply financing a change of shareholders. They are trying to take control of a large master franchise operation, and RBI's approval is decisive.
RBI's reported global scale gives context to that relationship, although the available materials do not set out the specific contract terms for a change of control at RBE.
The timing also matters for Cinven. The possible sale follows its exit from Masorange and comes as the investment firm works on the divestment of Accumin. Morgan Stanley and Clifford Chance are advising on the RBE process, according to the details available in the earlier report.
RBI's corporate disclosures include a quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed on August 6, 2026. That filing is a primary document for checking RBI's reported operations. The available search result does not set out the approval provision said to apply to a change in RBE's majority ownership. The specific terms would need to be checked against the filing and the applicable franchise agreements.
No sale has been completed, and no majority transfer has been approved. The negotiated framework centres on Jiménez, the Galán and Costa families, and possible minority investors. The proposed valuation of €2.1 billion to €2.5 billion describes a potential transaction, not a completed deal.
The available search materials independently confirm RBI's size and recent operating indicators. They do not independently verify the reported negotiations, the proposed valuation, the 51% voting bloc, the participation of Peninsula Capital and Corporación Financiera Alba, or Mubadala's possible return as a minority investor. RBI's consent remains the condition that could decide the deal.
