In 2014, China’s appetite for international travel is further encouraging investors to seek out luxury hotel assets in major cities.

In 2014, China’s appetite for international travel is further encouraging investors to seek out luxury hotel assets in major cities. According to incomplete statistics, the editor summarized some overseas investment of Chinese Group.

On November 21, Sunshine Insurance Group completed the acquisition of Sheraton on the Park, Sydney, Australia at AU$463mln and established a long-term strategic partnership with Sheraton Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., the US-based hotel manager. The acquisition agreement between Sunshine Insurance Group and Sheraton Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. was signed on October 10, 2014, with subsequent approval from the government of Australia. With the execution of the acquisition, Sunshine Insurance Group became the first successful acquirer of an offshore hotel in China’s insurance sector.

On November 18, HNA Group has acquired 8.3% equity of Spanish-based NH hotel group held by Intesa San Paolo. The equity held by HNA group rose to 29.5%. HNA Group now has a substantial equity stake in the company, which means HNA Group has become the largest shareholder of NH hotel group.

On November 12, Starwood Capital Group and Jin Jiang International Holdings Co., Ltd. have signed an agreement regarding Starwood Capital Group's potential sale of Groupe du Louvre and its 100% indirect subsidiary Louvre Hotels Group for an undisclosed amount. Louvre Hotels Group is the second-largest hotel group in Europe, with a network of more than 1,100 hotels (more than 90,000 rooms) in more than 40 countries worldwide and six brands including Premi re Classe, Campanile, Kyriad, Tulip Inn, Golden Tulip and Royal Tulip Luxury Hotels.

On October 16, Plateno Hotels Group announced to launch a high-end boutique hotel, ALBAR, in Paris together with Paris Inn Group. ALBAR Hotel is a new brand based on Paris Hotel Group’s existing high-end boutique hotel brand and jointly launched by Plateno Hotels Group and Paris Inn Group. The launch of ALBAR means Plateno Hotels Group plans to enter global hotel market officially. Plateno Hotels Group plans to open 50 ALBAR hotels in China and 20 hotels overseas.

On October 6, Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group Co. Ltd. bought the iconic Waldorf Astoria New York from Hilton Worldwide for about US$1.95 billion. Anbang will undertake an extensive renovation of the hotel and give Hilton a 100-year management contract.

On August 8, Hangzhou Zhuyou Hotel Mgt Co., Inc. opened its first overseas hotel, Pod inn in Universal Studios Hollywood. Pod inn became first economy hotel brand entering western hotel market.

On June 9, Wanda Group announced to add a 160-room luxury hotel in London as part of a £700 million ($1.08 billion) twin-tower residential project acquired from Ireland’s Green Property. According to Wang Jianlin, chairman of Wanda Group, the 200-meter-tall hotel, located next to the Palace of Westminster and Battersea Power Station, is expected to become one of London's new landmark buildings. He said the company will build more five-star hotels overseas and plans to expand into eight to 10 major global cities in the next 10 years.

On March 19, GreenTree Hotel Management Group (GreenTree) had its first franchise hotel in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. This hotel significantly became the first step of foreign GreenTree. Besides in Bangladesh, GreenTree also has several hotels are now in the pipeline in United Sates, South Korea, Vietnam, and more. GreenTree is ready to expand its foreign market rapidly.

On January 22, Shanghai Greenland Group, one of the top three real estate and property management companies in China, signed an agreement with InterContinental Hotels Group (“IHG”) to jointly build a high-end business hotel in the center of Los Angeles. Greenland’s luxury hotel brand, Primus, was launched in center of Sydney, which is the first Chinese hotel group entering Sydney(Translation by Maggie)