Equity Bank Takes Control of Luxury Glee Hotel After Sh8 Billion Loan Default

The commercial lender, Equity Bank Kenya Limited, has placed the multi-billion-shilling luxury Glee Hotel under administration after the establishment defaulted on loans worth more than Sh8 billion.

In a public notice issued under the Insolvency Act of 2015, the lender announced the appointment of insolvency practitioner Kamal Anantroy Bhatt as the administrator, with the directive taking effect from July 6, 2026.

The appointment effectively strips the directors of Glee Hotel Limited of their authority to manage or transact the assets of the company.

Control of the daily operations and all physical assets of the property now rests with the appointed administrator.

The corporate move follows a prolonged debt battle that has played out within the corridors of the Nairobi High Court since late 2025.

Court filings from the ongoing dispute specify that the outstanding debt stands at Sh8.267 billion, while an independent valuation commissioned by the bank estimates the open market worth of the property at approximately Sh9.5 billion.

The hotel owner and prominent businesswoman, Mary Wambui Mungai, who is widely recognized as a close ally of President Ruto, had spent several months fighting the aggressive debt recovery efforts.

The high-stakes legal battle reached a critical point in June 2026, when the High Court declined to grant the hotel owner unconditional protection against the lender.

The court ordered Mungai to pay the bank Sh100 million within seven days, failing which the automatic suspension of the statutory power of sale would lapse.

That temporary window followed a failed out-of-court settlement agreement, which had been formally recorded on February 24, 2026.

Under that original consent agreement, the lender had agreed to accept a reduced sum of Sh7.75 billion as full settlement, which represented roughly 85 percent of the total debt.

The settlement was supposed to be refinanced through Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) within a strict 45-day window, but the arrangement collapsed because the required extensive due diligence could not be completed in time.

Mungai had requested an additional 60 days from the court to complete the refinancing process, but the bank strongly opposed the extension.

The financial institution maintained that the dispute had already been conclusively resolved through a binding consent judgment, meaning there was no legal justification for changing the timelines.

With the administration order now in full effect, any individuals or entities holding claims against the hotel company have thirty days to submit their documentation to the administrator.

The operational takeover highlights a growing financial trend across the capital city, where several upscale hospitality properties have recently faced aggressive debt recovery enforcement.

The hotel sits on an expansive eight-acre plot located along the Northern Bypass in the affluent Runda neighborhood, positioned near the United Nations Office in Nairobi (UNON).

The independent 211-room property launched in late 2023 to capture the diplomatic community and the growing corporate conference market.

The luxury resort features nine comprehensive meeting rooms, an expansive pillarless ballroom, six distinct restaurants, a rooftop skywalk, and a heated swimming pool.

Its high-end interior spaces were designed by Kristina Zanic Interiors, an international award-winning firm based in Dubai.