When Anbang Insurance Group unexpectedly walked away last week from its planned $14 billion offer for Starwood Hotels & Resorts, it left plenty of people scratching their heads. The Chinese bidder vaguely cited “market considerations” as its reason. Fred Hu, chairman of Primavera Capital Group, a partner in Anbang’s bid, told the Wall Street Journal the consortium dropped out because the deal had become too expensive. Providing proof of financing has been a consistent problem for Anbang in its quest for Starwood, but the insurer seemed to have overcome those financing concerns in March, when it submitted the $13.2 billion offer that threatened to derail the Mariott-Starwood merger. When rival suitor Marriott topped that bid, Anbang came back with a $14 billion offer, but it was never made binding. Anbang’s abrupt withdrawal has added fuel to concerns that many Chinese companies may not be able to deliver on their acquisition expectations, Reuters writes. To read more, click here.
