(Bloomberg)—As Anbang Insurance Group Co. comes under pressure to reverse a $10 billion-plus global deal spree, a quick selldown of assets may not be so easy.
China is said to have asked the acquisitive insurer to sell its overseas assets, which include a formidable array of holdings spanning trophy hotels in the U.S. to financial firms in Europe and Asia. When it comes to holdings in financial firms -- like insurers or banks -- delays could include national regulators wanting to vet sales processes. Many of the firm’s assets are illiquid and can’t be unloaded quickly without losses, said Christopher Beddor, an associate at Eurasia Group.
A fire-sale might “spook the company’s policyholders or prove politically embarrassing to Chinese officials,” Beddor said.
Chinese authorities have asked Anbang to sell assets and bring the proceeds back home, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News. Anbang hasn’t received such a request and “at present has no plans to sell its overseas assets,” the company said in an emailed statement.
The single biggest asset: Chicago-based firm Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc., which Anbang acquired in a deal valued at about $6.5 billion. The group boasts hotels such as San Francisco’s Westin St. Francis and JW Marriott Essex House in New York, the Manhattan hotel near Central Park known for the red-lettered sign on its roof.
Also eye-catching: New York’s landmark Waldorf Astoria, bought for $1.95 billion, but now closed for renovations that will convert most of the property into luxury condominiums. One twist, if Anbang wants to sell, is that the previous owner, Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc., has a 100-year agreement to operate the hotel.
High-profile sites in the U.S. also include the Fifth Avenue, Manhattan, site of Anbang’s U.S. headquarters, which the firm acquired from Blackstone Group LP.
The stakes in financial firms include Tongyang Life Insurance Co. in South Korea and a bank and an insurer in Belgium.
Some analysts already have ideas about potential contenders, including Blackstone, the world’s largest manager of alternative assets, which previously owned some of the U.S. holdings. Lukas Hartwich, at Green Street Advisors LLC, pointed to sovereign wealth funds and Blackstone as potential purchasers of leading hotels. He called the Waldorf Astoria “more of a turnaround play to return the hotel to its former glory.”
In the case of at least one business, in South Korea, a legal dispute may be an extra complication. In June, Yuanta Securities (Korea) disclosed that Anbang and the former owners of Tongyang Life were arguing in an international arbitration court in Hong Kong. Facing a claim for 59.7 billion won ($53 million), Anbang responded with a counter-claim for 698 billion won, Yuanta, a party to the case, said.
Large assets held by Anbang include:
Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc., based in Chicago-- 100% owned-- Deal valued at about $6.5 billion at time of agreement-- Acquired September 2016-- Owns about 15 hotels, including marquee assets like San Francisco’s Westin St. Francis (valued at $1 billion by Real Capital Analytics Inc.), JW Marriott Essex House in New York ($705 million) and the InterContinental Chicago ($508 million)
Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York-- 100% owned-- Paid $1.95 billion-- Acquired February 2015-- Condo conversion started in March will take about three years
InnVest Real Estate Investment Trust, one of Canada’s largest hotel owners-- Stated acquirer was Bluesky Hotels & Resorts Inc., which may have ties to Anbang, people with knowledge of the matter said at the time-- Paid C$2.1 billion ($1.6 billion)-- Acquired May 2016
Vivat NV, Utrecht, Netherlands-- Paid 1 euro for initial acquisition, agreed to invest 1.35 billion euros to recapitalize company-- Acquired July 2015-- Anbang used Vivat to purchase more than 500 million euros of office properties in cities including Amsterdam and Utrecht from Blackstone Group LP, people with knowledge of the matter said in October 2016-- The Dutch unit also acquired $1.1 billion of residential mortgages from Rabobank in deal announced in March 2016
Tongyang Life Insurance Co. in South Korea-- Paid more than 1.1 trillion won ($969 million) for controlling stake-- Acquired in September 2015
Bentall Centre in Vancouver-- 100% owned, bought in two stages-- Terms not disclosed-- Agreed in May 2016 to buy remaining 33 percent in a deal valuing the complex at more than C$1 billion, according to people familiar with the matter
Fidea NV, Antwerp, Belgium-- Paid 369 million euros -- Acquired May 2015
717 Fifth Avenue in New York, Anbang’s U.S. headquarters-- Office portion 100% owned-- Paid about $415 million-- Acquired around May 2015
Delta Lloyd Bank, Brussels, Belgium-- Paid 206 million euros -- Acquired July 2015, now known as Nagelmackers
70 York Street in Toronto, 17-story office building-- 100% owned-- Paid C$110 million -- Acquired September 2015
Allianz SE’s insurance operations in South Korea-- Paid 1.6 million euros -- Acquired in December 2016
--With assistance from Shawna Kwan, Zhang Dingmin, Hui-yong Yu, Timothy Sifert and Jonathan Browning.To contact the reporter on this story: Paul Panckhurst in Hong Kong at [email protected] To contact the editors responsible for this story: Sree Vidya Bhaktavatsalam at [email protected] ;Ben Scent at [email protected]
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