Hilton Worldwide agrees to sell Waldorf Astoria to a Chinese company for $1.95 billion

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. in McLean announced Monday that it has entered into an agreement with Anbang Insurance Group Co. Ltd., an insurance company based in Beijing, in which Anbang has agreed to purchase the Waldorf Astoria New York for $1.95 billion. As part of a long-term strategic partnership, Anbang will grant Hilton Worldwide a management agreement to continue to operate the property for the next 100 years, and the hotel will undergo a major renovation.

The Waldorf Astoria New York on Park Avenue is the flagship hotel of Hilton Worldwide’s rapidly expanding luxury brand, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts. Since 2007, the brand has increased its footprint to a portfolio of 27 destinations, including Amsterdam, Beijing, Chicago, Dubai, Jerusalem and Shanghai. Its pipeline of nine additional hotels includes key destinations such as Bali, Bangkok and Beverly Hills.

“We are very excited to be entering into this long-term relationship with Anbang, which will ensure that the Waldorf Astoria New York represents the brand’s world-class standards for generations to come. This relationship represents a unique opportunity for our organizations to work together to finally maximize the full value of this iconic asset on a full city block in midtown Manhattan,” Christopher J. Nassetta, president and CEO of Hilton Worldwide, said in a statement.

Hilton Worldwide said it would use proceeds from the sale to acquire additional hotel assets in the U.S. in one or more transactions as part of a like-kind exchange under Internal Revenue Code Section 1031. These acquisitions will be finalized and announced at a later date.

The Waldorf Astoria New York was called “The Greatest of the Them All” by Hilton Worldwide’s founder Conrad Hilton. With its Art Deco architecture, it has been internationally recognized as a grand hotel for more than a century. It offers restaurants (including Peacock Alley, Bull and Bear Prime Steakhouse and Oscar’s), lounges and bars, the Guerlain Spa, more than 60,000 square feet of high-tech equipped function space, a business center and boutiques.

Hilton Worldwide is a global hospitality company, with properties ranging from luxury and full-service hotels and resorts to extended-stay suites. The company's portfolio of 11 world-class global brands is comprised of more than 4,200 managed, franchised, owned and leased hotels and timeshare properties, with more than 690,000 rooms in 93 countries and territories, including Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Curio – A Collection by Hilton, DoubleTree by Hilton, Embassy Suites Hotels, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Hotels, Homewood Suites by Hilton, Home2 Suites by Hilton and Hilton Grand Vacations.

Anbang Insurance Group has more than 30,000 employees and more than $700 billion yuan in assets. It provides a range of financial and insurance services and products to more than 20 million customers, including life insurance, pensions, health insurance, property and casualty insurance and asset management.