Kai Tai Fung International Co (開泰豐國際), owner of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group’s (文華東方酒店) Taipei branch, yesterday dismissed as groundless a newspaper report claiming it has sold the luxury hotel to a Chinese buyer for NT$48 billion (US$1.55 billion).
“The report is an utterly irresponsible fabrication, as we have no intention of selling the property,” Kai Tai Fung chairman Lin Ming-chun (林命群) told the Chinese-language Commercial Times.
Lin made the statement after the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) ran an exclusive front-page story saying that former CTBC Financial Holding Co (中信金) vice chairman Jeffrey Koo Jr (辜仲諒) helped broker the deal in Hong Kong.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
The report said Lin asked for NT$50 billion, with both sides agreeing to NT$48 billion after negotiations.
Lin said he has been plagued by similar reports over the past few years and questioned why the media failed to verify their reports.
“It would be impossible for me to accept a NT$48 billion bid after I turned down an offer of NT$60 billion, as some media reported two years ago,” Lin said.
Located near Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport), the hotel boasts 256 rooms and 47 suites with an advertised nightly rate of NT$16,500 for a standard room — one of the most expensive in Taiwan.
CTBC Bank (中信銀行), the banking arm of CTBC Financial, reportedly agreed to underwrite the deal to avoid a lack of trust between Lin and the unnamed Chinese buyer from ruining the deal. CTBC Bank yesterday said it could not comment on “such a groundless rumor.”
A lack of trust reportedly foiled a deal last year between a potential buyer and the Kaohsiung-based E-Da World (義大世界) theme park and its adjacent hotels, the Liberty Times said.
The Mandarin Oriental Taipei would be a bargain at NT$50 billion when compared with the value for other branches in Hong Kong or elsewhere, the daily said.
Wealthy Chinese businesspeople have shown a keen interest in acquiring real estate in Taiwan for political and commercial reasons. Some have managed to acquire stakes in popular scenic resort hotels in Taiwan to capitalize on the fast-growing number of tourists from China.
Affluent Chinese would take up residence in Taiwan if the local government would permit them to do so, Beijing-based property developer Vantone Holdings Co (萬通控股) said in Taipei last month.
The government should adopt a positive view of foreign investment in Taiwan, regardless of the origin of the capital, Lin said.
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