Team

Sarmad Zok

Chief Executive Officer 

Sarmad Zok is the Chief Executive Officer of Kingdom Hotel Investments (UK) Ltd (KHI) headquartered in London, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC). He is a Director on the boards of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, AccorHotels, and KHC. Mr. Zok is an active member of the boards of the hotel management companies he sits on, being directly engaged on strategy, product, operations/guest experience, growth and value creation.

In 2006, Mr. Zok led KHI on its Initial Public Offering on the Dubai International Financial Exchange (the predecessor to NASDAQ Dubai) and the London Stock Exchange. Since a successful take-private in 2010 he has headed KHI’s hotel investment management team in Dubai in managing an integrated luxury hospitality investment portfolio across the US, Europe and growth/developing markets in the Middle East, Africa and Asia. For over two decades KHI has invested by acquiring, developing, actively asset managing and monetizing 54 hotels globally.

In 2022 Mr. Zok transacted on the disposal of half of KHC’s stake in Four Seasons in a $10 Bn deal. In 2016, Mr. Zok led the sale and merger of Fairmont Raffles with AccorHotels and in 2018 the integration of Movenpick Hotels & Resorts with AccorHotels in a $4 Bn transaction.

In his early career, Mr. Zok worked at HVS International and Hilton International. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Hotel Management from the University of Surrey and a Masters of Arts in Property Valuation and Law from City University Business School in London. He was previously on the Boards of BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust plc, Fairmont Raffles Hotels and Movenpick Hotels.

Tareq M. Fontane

Senior Vice President, Investment Management

Tareq Fontane joined the Kingdom organization in 2015 as a Senior Associate in the Asset Management Department.

Since then, he has played a key role in a number of high-profile transactional and asset management initiatives, including the sale and merger of Fairmont Raffles Hotels International to Accor in 2016, and the subsequent sale of Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts to Accor in 2018. Tareq has also been deeply involved in the asset management of flagship properties such as the Four Seasons Hotel George V in Paris and The Savoy Hotel in London.

Notably, in 2022, Tareq contributed to the landmark $2.2 billion sale of a 50% stake in Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts to Cascade Investment LLC, securing a $10 billion enterprise valuation for the company.

Prior to joining Kingdom, Tareq was a Manager in the Feasibility and Development Planning Department at Marriott International, where he conducted market and financial feasibility studies to support development efforts across the Middle East and Africa. His work combined on-the-ground research with financial analysis to align project potential with long-term brand and owner objectives.

Tareq holds a Bachelor of Science in Hotel Administration from Cornell University, with a Minor in Real Estate and Finance.