As Anbang’s hotel takeover gets blocked, expect more government interventions as Chinese firms continue to snap up US assets
A deal to buy California hotel, near a major naval base, from Blackstone called off following opposition from US national-security officials
Anbang Insurance Group’s planned takeover of a landmark Southern California hotel has collapsed after the seller, Blackstone Group, called off the transaction following opposition from US national-security officials.
The US government has stepped up its scrutiny into Chinese-backed acquisition deals after a spate of purchases including properties, movie makers and tech companies in recent months.
But analysts say the whole issue has been overblown, and is largely being fueled by the ongoing US presidential election, and its anti-Chinese rhetoric.
Blackstone ended the sale of the Hotel del Coronado near San Diego, estimated to be worth about US$1 billion, after fears were raised by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which reviews acquisitions of American businesses by non-US entities for national-security risks.
The hotel, where the 1959 Billy Wilder comedy “Some Like It Hot” was filmed, is one of the most valuable of the 16 luxury properties that were part of Strategic Hotels & Resorts, a real estate investment trust that Blackstone acquired last December for about US$6 billion.
The firm agreed in March to sell Strategic Hotels to Anbang for US$6.5 billion. Anbang had completed the purchase of 15 of the 16 hotels in the portfolio last month, according to Bloomberg, citing an unnamed source.