The Bambú Restauración group, owner of 99 Sushi Bar and KŌ by 99 Sushi Bar, has just merged with the company Ninety Nine SB Investment LLC, of Abu Dhabi, through an Emirati fund that acquires the majority of the Spanish company, created in 2017. With this operation, the group founded by brothers Fernando and Pedro de León aims to consolidate and expand the 99 Sushi Bar brand internationally. Following the agreement, Jaime Castañeda, CEO of Ninety Nine SB Investment LLC, will become the new global CEO, while the De León brothers will continue to serve on the board of directors “to contribute, with their extensive experience, to the growth of the new company”, reads the press release. The merger will not affect KŌ by 99 Sushi Bar, which will remain under the control of the founders, who recently assured this newspaper that the group’s turnover has reached 20 million euros.
The goal is to strengthen the expansion and internationalization of 99 Sushi Bars under a single corporate entity. The new group, which has almost 400 employees and 10 restaurants, is also preparing the opening of three new spaces in 2026 and a fourth in 2027. The first London location will arrive in March 2026 (work in Mayfair is at an advanced stage); In May it will open in the new St. Regis Budapest hotel, and after the summer it will arrive in Doha (Qatar), in the Katara cultural complex. In 2027, the brand plans to land in Miami: the rental of a unique space in Brickell is under negotiation and work is already underway to establish the company in the United States.
“The goal is very ambitious: to bring the 99 Sushi Bar brand to all the cities we propose to continue making our group a global company,” explains Fernando de León. “Our philosophy is simple and immovable: to be the best and offer perfection through cuisine, service and the relationship with our customers.” As for the new partners, he underlines that “they share values of discipline, excellence, authenticity and respect, always supported by teams proud to represent the number 99”. He concludes that “a fascinating phase is beginning”.
An international company with 20 years of experience
Grupo Bambú was born in February 2005 with the opening of the first of its premises in Calle Salud, Sushi Bar 19, one of the first izakaya in Madrid. In 2008, its first 99 Sushi Bar arrived in Ponzano —where sommelier Mónica Fernández, now general director, had a decisive role—, followed by Hermosilla (2009), La Moraleja (2012) and Padre Damián, in Eurobuilding (2014). In 2019 he opened the 99 KO Sushi Bar, an exclusive 16-seat bar that gave the company its first Michelin star; post-pandemic restrictions forced its closure.
Ten years after their debut in Madrid, in 2016, they opened their first restaurant outside the capital, in Sarrià (Barcelona). The Marbella branch arrived in 2020, in Villa Padierna. International expansion began in 2017, in Abu Dhabi, at the Four Seasons on Al Maryah Island, where they achieved their first Michelin star in 2022, the first achieved by a Spanish company in the region. Followed by Dubai (2020), Rabat (2022) and Monaco (2025), the latter in the Le Petit Portier marina of the Mareterra project, the ultra-luxury development that has gained six hectares from the Mediterranean. Last March, KŌ by 99 Sushi Bar opened its doors on the tenth floor of the Santiago Bernabéu stadium.
