Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani is now a major stakeholder of Mandarin Oriental in New York. Mr. Ambani is the head of the Reliance Industries conglomerate who announced the deal. The acquisition talks are expected to close by March of 2022.
The billionaire snatched the opportunity of buying the stakes at $98.2 million. In 2007, Mandarin Oriental disclosed the property value at $340 million. The hotel was hit hard by the pandemic reporting a revenue of $15 million in 2020. This is in comparison to the previous $113 million in 2019.
Reliance Industries is known for its investments in the energy, retail, and tech sectors. Recently they stated that they are looking to add consumer and hospitality to their growing list. Acquiring Mandarin Oriental adds a stellar property listing for the successful conglomerate.
Mr. Ambani is looking to make Reliance the next biggest tech giant in the world market. He was recently reported to be on a deal-making spree throughout the pandemic. He has racked up tens of billions from the spree elevating his wealth to $92.9 billion. This made him Asia’s richest man and ranked 11th richest person in the world.