Hilton Worldwide is selling the Waldorf Astoria New York to Chinese insurance company Anbang Insurance Group Co. for $1.95 billion.(Photo: (c) 2014 Waldorf Astoria)
NEW YORK, NY — Hilton Worldwide says it will sell the storied Waldorf Astoria New York to the Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group Co. for $1.95 billion, but the U.S. based hotel chain will continue to run the legendary property for another 100 years.
"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,'' Christopher Nassetta, president and CEO of Hilton Worldwide said in a statement.
As part of the agreement between the two companies, the Waldorf, a New York City landmark since 1993, will undergo a significant renovation. Money made from the sale will enable Hilton Worldwide, the largest hotel group in the world based on number of rooms, to buy more properties in the U.S.
The deal is scheduled to close on December 31, 2014, but if that closing time is delayed, the companies must finalize the purchase no later than March 31, 2015.
The Waldorf Astoria New York is the flagship for Hilton Worldwide's Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts brand, which has 27 luxury hotels worldwide, and another nine more in development. The fabled New York property is the only hotel in the Waldorf chain being sold to Anbang.
The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York has been sold to Chinese insurance company Anbang Insurance Group Co. for $1.95 billion.(Photo: Stephen Chernin, AP)
The hotel is iconic. It was initially built on the site of where the Empire State Building now stands by cousins William Waldorf Astor and John Jacob Astor IV, according to the hotel's website.
When it flung open its doors at its new Park Avenue address on Oct. 1, 1931, the Waldorf was then the biggest hotel in the world. Marilyn Monroe once lived there, and every American president since Herbert Hoover has visited. It became part of the Hilton family of hotels when founder Conrad Hilton attained management rights to the property in October 1949.
Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. became a private company in 2007, but began to again be traded publicly in Dec. 2013.
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