Gregorio Jiménez retakes Burger King operator RBE from Cinven in €2.3B buyout
What's the deal? Spanish entrepreneur Gregorio Jiménez and a consortium of investors have agreed to buy Restaurant Brands Europe (RBE) from private equity firm CinvenDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → in a deal valuing the company at €2.3 billion. RBE operates Burger KingDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → in Spain and Portugal and PopeyesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → in Spain and Italy, running more than 1,150 restaurants and employing 26,000 people. Jiménez, RBE's founder and executive chairman, will take control with a 51% stake.
Who's backing it? The consortium includes Grupo Costa (€100 million) and Royal Park, the family office of Iberdrola chairman Ignacio Sánchez Galán (€80 million). Also joining are fund Point Break (€200 million), RAM, Fernando Núñez for Grupo IbéricaDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Santiago Jiménez, and RBE's management team.
How is it financed? Santander CIB and JP Morgan advised the consortium and, alongside BBVA, secured a €1.4 billion loan to fund part of the leveraged buyout. A&O Shearman acted as legal advisers.
By the numbers: RBE has more than quintupled sales since 2017, from €282 million to €1,541 million in 2025, with EBITDA rising from €52 million to €245 million. The company returned to profit with €39.4 million in net earnings, lifted EBITDA 18%, and opened 105 restaurants over the past year; Popeyes grew sales 27% in Spain.
Why now? The €2.3 billion valuation — about 9.5 times 2025 EBITDA — crystallises a sharp revaluation for Cinven, which bought control in 2021 for roughly €1 billion and more than doubled the business. The exit follows a year of operational improvement across the group.
What's the endgame? Jiménez says the deal opens "a new stage of growth" aimed at consolidating Burger King and Popeyes across Iberia and Italy. The company plans to fund further expansion and diversification, with stable shareholder backing from management and investors.
The signal: The transaction is exceptional in scale for Spanish restaurant businesses, returning control to a founder-led consortium. The open question is whether the new group — carrying roughly €1.4 billion in debt — can sustain the expansion pace that drove the valuation.
Read more: elespanol.com
Image credit: Josiah Mackenzie
