CityDev's M&C's Sale Of Hilton Seoul Is Off

Source : The Business Times, November 28, 2008

City Developments' London-listed hotel unit Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (M&C) announced on Friday that the agreement for the disposal of Millennium Seoul Hilton to Kangho AMC Co has been terminated with immediate effect.

The buyer was unable to finalise its financing arrangements by the extended completion date of Nov 28.

The sale, announced in June this year, was to have been for about 580 billion Korean won (around S$767 million at the time.

On Sept 19, 2008, M&C announced that Kangho had asked the company for an extension of the completion date originally scheduled on Sept 30, 2008, whilst it finalised the terms of its financing arrangements. On Sept 29, 2008, M&C announced that the company and Kangho had agreed, among other things, to the amendment of the completion date of the disposal from Sept 30, 2008, to Nov 28, 2008.

'M&C today announces that while the company was ready, willing and able to complete the disposal, Kangho has, in the current difficult financial markets, been unable to finalise its financing arrangements and, consequently, the remainder of the purchase price remains unpaid,' M&C said in its statement.

The agreement for the disposal has therefore terminated with immediate effect.

Following the termination of the disposal, the Millennium Seoul Hilton will continue to be managed by the M&C group.