Brookfield buys Leela Hotels for $576mn

Canada's Brookfield Asset Management has agreed to purchase a set of four hotels, a hospitality development project and branding rights to one of the hotel chains from the debt-laden Hotel Leela Venture for $576 million (Rs 39.5 billion), according to a stock exchange filing by the Indian company.

The acquisition allows Brookfield to add one hotel each in the Indian cities of Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi and Udaipur, along with the development project in Agra, less than two months after it reached a $15 billion final close on its largest ever global real estate investment fund.

Vivek Nair, chairman and MD of Hotel Leela Venture, said in a statement: “The Leela is rated amongst the top hospitality brands in the world and I am confident that the brand will receive a boost and be further strengthened and continue to be known for its world-class services.”