HNA’s planned sale of Hilton stake to bring total asset disposal to nearly US$13 billion

HNA Group, the debt-ladened conglomerate under China’s regulatory spotlight, plans to potentially unload its entire US$6.5 billion stake in Hilton Worldwide, adding to the US$6.2 billion of domestic and foreign assets it has dumped this year to repay its excessive borrowings.

HNA “has determined to pursue a sale of some or all of the common stock” that it currently holds in Hilton Worldwide, the US company said in a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday.

Currently, HNA owns 26.1 per cent of Hilton, one of the world’s largest hotel operators, which was worth US$6.5 billion in value by Thursday’s market close in the US.

The Chinese company did not respond to a request for comment on Friday afternoon.

HNA bought the stake in Hilton in 2016 from its biggest shareholder, the US private equity firm Blackstone Group for US$6.5 billion. Later that year, Hilton Worldwide split into three independent units – real estate business Park Hotels and Resorts, timeshare business Hilton Grand Vacations and Hilton Worldwide – giving HNA stakes in each unit.