Lotus Hotel fund partners with Carlson Hotels in Asia

The $1bn private equity fund will take advantage of surging demand for hotels in the major business and leisure districts of Asia by teaming with Carlson, the owner of several hotel brands including Radisson.

Carlson Hotels Worldwide – Asia Pacific, has formed a partnership with the Lotus Hotel Investment Fund, a new $1 billion (€706 million) private equity fund which is being set up to target hotel development opportunities in high-growth markets in Asia.

According to Lotus, the partnership will focus primarily on strategic hotel development opportunities in China and India, but will also focus on other key growth markets in the region including Thailand and Vietnam.

Lotus Hotel Investment Fund CEO Arun Amarsi said the fund is in the process of being launched, and is intended as a specialist provider of capital focused on both new hotel developments and refurbishment/re-branding opportunities. The fund will partner with global and regional brands to operate them under management contracts, he said.

Martin Rinck, the new head of Carlson’s Asia Pacific operations, will lead that side of the partnership. Rinck started at Carlson Hotels Worldwide – Asia Pacific in Singapore on October 1st after joining from The Rezidor Hotel Group in Europe, where he led business development for four years. The Rezidor Hotel Group manages Carlson Hotel brands in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Carlson Hotels Worldwide – Asia Pacific already manages the largest portfolio of hotels of any international hotel group operating in India, according to the company. It is also expanding its presence in other key markets across the region, including China, where it has more than doubled its presence over the last four years. Carlson Hotels Worldwide – Asia Pacific is based in Singapore and is the regional headquarters for Carlson Hotels Worldwide in the Asia-Pacific region and is supported by reservations, sales and development offices in Tokyo, Shanghai, New Delhi and Sydney.

Carlson Hotels Worldwide, based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, includes five hotel brands: Regent Hotels & Resorts, Radisson Hotels & Resorts, Park Plaza, Country Inns & Suites By Carlson, and Park Inn.