L. Joseph
Phone: (202) 473-7700
Fax: (202) 974-4384
E-mail: LJoseph@ifc.org


WASHINGTON, D.C., July 10—The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has approved US$41 million in financing for the Saigon Hilton Hotel, an international standard high quality hotel in Ho Chi Minh City. The hotel -- the total cost of which is US$81.5 million -- will be located in the central district of Ho Chi Minh City on the west bank of the Saigon River. It will have 390 rooms with 30 service apartments.

"The hotel will help meet the demand created by increased business travel and tourism to Vietnam by providing a new standard of service and accommodation for Ho Chi Minh City," said Mr. Javed Hamid, Director of IFC's newly-created Asia I Department, which includes Cambodia, China, Fiji, Kiribati, Korea, Laos, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Tonga, Vanuatu and Vietnam.

Mr. Hamid added, "The new hotel is also expected to contribute substantially to the expansion of the country's tourism sector and be a model for other similar projects. IFC has been devoting significant resources to the tourism sector in Vietnam because it is a major growth industry as well as a significant foreign exchange earner and employment generator."

IFC's financing consists of a loan of US$9.5 million for its own account, a subordinated loan of US$3.55 million and a syndicated loan of US$28 million for the account of participants. Credit Agricole Indosuez of France acted as co-arranger of the financing with IFC and as lead manager of the syndicated loan. IFC's financing was supplemented by Deutsche Investitions-und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH (DEG), Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden N.V. (FMO) and Korea Merchant Banking Corporation. The Saigon Hilton Hotel will be owned by Soci,t, d'Economie Mixte Hotel Pointe des Blagueurs, a joint venture between a Vietnamese state-owned entity and foreign investors. The foreign sponsors are Feal International S.A., a French company specializing in hotel construction and renovation and Hilton International Co., a renowned international hotel operator. The local sponsor is Saigon Tourist, a state-owned company and the largest tourism and hotel operator in Vietnam.

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest multilateral source of equity and loan financing for private sector projects in developing countries.