Anbang Insurance
Group, which has bid $12.8 billion to buy out Starwood
Hotels & Resorts, hired a proxy-solicitation company to better gauge
Starwood shareholders’ opinion of the proposed buyout, Reuters said, citing
people familiar with the process.
Anbang hired Georgeson Inc. to contact Starwood shareholders, according to
Reuters. Starwood declined to comment and representatives with Anbang did not immediately respond
to request for comment from Travel Weekly on Thursday afternoon.
Starwood since November has been
under contract to be acquired by Marriott International for $12.2 billion, and
is subject to a $400 million termination fee should it walk away from that
agreement.
Marriott has granted Starwood a
waiver to hold talks with Anbang. That waiver is set to expire at
midnight tonight.