The portfolio includes the Grand Hyatt, the Renaissance Harbour View Hotel, and the Hyatt Regency in Kowloon, the people said, asking not to be identified because the deliberations are confidential. Abu Dhabi Investment Authority owns the other half of the portfolio.
The potential buyers include Singapore-based Aravest Pte, a Sumitomo Mitsui Finance & Leasing Co.-backed real estate manager that oversees about $9.3 billion in assets. New World is expected to pocket about $300 million in cash after netting off debt, one of the people said.
Negotiations are ongoing and could still break down, the people said.
“While potential buyer(s) approach the company in respect of its various assets (including its Hong Kong hotel assets) from time to time, as of the date of this announcement, no agreement has been entered into in relation to any such disposal which would require disclosure under the listing rules,” New World said in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Tuesday night.
Representatives at Aravest and Sumitomo Mitsui Finance declined to comment.
New World has long been seeking a broader solution to its debt challenges. Talks with outside investors, including Blackstone Inc., on taking a stake in the firm itself have stalled amid concerns over ceding control and its contingent liabilities owed to the government tied to a mall near the city’s airport.
The hotel deal would only provide relatively modest proceeds against New World’s roughly HK$122.7 billion ($15.7 billion) in net debt as of the end of 2025.
Aravest was spun out in 2024 after ESR Group Ltd. sold the private funds business of ARA Asset Management Ltd., which it acquired, to a consortium led by Sumitomo Mitsui Finance & Leasing. The mid-sized, Asia-focused manager led the acquisition of the former Hotel Miramar in Singapore last year through a fund structure, and its broader portfolio spans hospitality, office and retail.
By Cathy Chan and Low De Wei
