Marriott ‘Confident’ Merger With Starwood Is The Right Move

Marriott International said Monday it remains committed to its merger with Starwood Hotels & Resorts, following news a Chinese investment group may undermine the deal with an unsolicited bid to acquire the company.

Starwood received a $12.8 billion offer Friday from a consortium of investors, led by Anbang Insurance Group. Through its agreement with Marriott, Starwood can evaluate the deal.

Marriott said it will monitor these developments as it gets ready for the next step of the acquisition: shareholder meetings for both companies set for March 28.

Starwood said in a statement its board of directors still supports the Marriott merger. 

The combined company would create the world’s largest hotel chain, with more than 5,500 hotels with 1.1 million rooms worldwide.