[News] Donald Trump reaches $375m deal to sell Washington DC hotel

The Trump Organization has reached a deal to sell the rights to its Washington DC hotel for $375m (£279m), according to the Wall Street Journal.

 

Miami-based investment firm CGI Merchant Group is in contract to acquire the lease for the Trump International Hotel, the newspaper reported.

 

The hotel is in a historic building a few blocks from the White House that the Trump Organization leases from the US government.

 

The hotel has been a popular gathering spot for Trump supporters and foreign dignitaries.

 

The newspaper said CGI intends to remove the Trump name and has reached an agreement with Hilton Worldwide Holdings to have the property managed and branded by Hilton’s Waldorf Astoria group.

 

Last month, the US House Committee on Oversight and Reform said newly obtained government documents raised “troubling” questions about the hotel.

 

According to the Democratic-controlled committee, Donald Trump reported that the hotel earned him more than $150m (£112m) during his time in office but actually lost more than $70m (£52m).

 

The committee found that the hotel received more than $3.7m (£2.76m) in payments from foreign governments – equal to more than 7,400 nights at the hotel, raising a potential conflict of interest.

 

The hotel is in the city’s second-tallest structure after the Washington Monument and the building previously housed the US Post Office Department headquarters.