Glee Hotel, one of Nairobi’s high-end hospitality establishments, has reportedly been placed under administration after defaulting on loans worth over Sh8 billion.
Sources familiar with the matter said Equity Bank has appointed insolvency practitioner Kamal Anantroy Bhatt as administrator, effectively transferring control of the hotel’s assets and operations as the lender moves to recover the outstanding debt.
The appointment comes only weeks after the High Court declined to grant the hotel owner and businesswoman Mary Wambui Mungai unconditional protection from the lender’s recovery efforts, ordering her to pay Equity Bank Sh100 million within seven days or risk losing the property to auction.
In its ruling, the High Court in Nairobi suspended the bank’s exercise of its statutory power of sale on condition that Wambui remits the amount within the specified period.
“The suspension is on condition that Mary Wambui Mungai pays Equity Bank the sum of Sh100 million within seven days of the date of this ruling, in default of which the order of suspension shall automatically lapse,” the court ruled.
Wambui had moved to court seeking to stop Equity Bank from auctioning Glee Hotel and other properties that had been charged as security for the loan, while also requesting an additional 60 days to comply with a settlement agreement reached earlier this year.
Under a consent agreement recorded on February 24, 2026, Equity Bank agreed to accept Sh7.75 billion as full and final settlement of the outstanding debt owed by Wambui and her related entities.
The amount represented about 85 per cent of the total debt and was expected to be refinanced through an arrangement with KCB Bank Kenya within 45 days.
The settlement, however, provided that failure to honour the payment deadline would allow Equity Bank to revoke the agreement and pursue recovery of the entire outstanding debt, together with accrued interest and associated costs, by enforcing the securities charged against the facilities.
Among the assets pledged as collateral were parcels of land on which Glee Hotel was developed.
In her application, Wambui argued that the refinancing arrangement required additional time because of the extensive due diligence being undertaken by KCB Bank, making it impossible to meet the agreed timelines.
Equity Bank opposed the request, maintaining that the dispute had already been conclusively resolved through a binding consent judgment voluntarily entered into by both parties and that there was no legal basis for extending the agreed payment period.
Located along Nairobi’s Northern Bypass in the affluent Runda neighbourhood, Glee Hotel is among the capital’s premium hospitality developments.
The 211-room property targets business and leisure travellers with facilities that include nine meeting rooms, expansive conference spaces and landscaped gardens for corporate and social events.
The hotel also benefits from its proximity to the United Nations offices, Village Market and Karura Forest, making it a preferred destination for diplomats, corporate guests and conference organisers.
Its amenities include six restaurants and bars, a nightclub, a heated swimming pool, a spa, family recreation areas and a skywalk, positioning it as one of Nairobi’s upscale mixed-use hospitality destinations.
Also Read: Mary Wambui: Meet businesswoman behind the prestigious Glee Hotel
