Pakistan reviews privatization options for New York’s Roosevelt Hotel

The entrance of the Roosevelt Hotel, a historic luxury hotel in Midtown Manhattan, is seen in New York on October 12, 2020. (AFP/File)

• Roosevelt Hotel is a long-held asset of PIA, which itself is undergoing a separate privatization process
• The hotel’s privatization is part of IMF-backed reforms to divest loss-making state-owned enterprises

KARACHI: Pakistan’s privatization board on Friday reviewed various options to sell off the Roosevelt Hotel in New York, a long-held property of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), as part of ongoing efforts to divest loss-making state assets under an International Monetary Fund-backed reform agenda.
The 19-story Roosevelt Hotel, located in midtown Manhattan, has been closed since 2020 and is owned by the Roosevelt Hotel Corporation, a subsidiary of PIA. Its fate has been under discussion for years amid attempts to generate funds from the government’s assets.
The Privatization Commission mentioned its deliberations in a statement, saying that it discussed various transaction options developed by its financial adviser — a consortium led by Jones Lang LaSalle Americas Inc. (JLL) — and finalized recommendations to be presented to the Cabinet Committee on Privatization (CCOP).
“Various transaction structure options developed by the Financial Adviser ... for privatization of Roosevelt Hotel Corporation (RHC), New York were discussed,” the statement read.
However, it did not divulge further details.
The Roosevelt Hotel is one of the assets included in the first phase of Pakistan’s privatization roadmap, which also features the sale of national flag carrier PIA and Zarai Taraqiati Bank (ZTBL). The government aims to complete these transactions within a year.
Pakistan is working to privatise several state-owned enterprises as part of structural reforms under a $7 billion loan program with the IMF. Many of these entities, including PIA, have long struggled with debt, mismanagement and operational inefficiencies.
The Roosevelt Hotel was earlier used to house asylum seekers under a temporary agreement with New York City but remains a financial burden on PIA, which is itself undergoing a separate privatization process. The government is seeking to sell a 51-100 percent stake in the airline and will invite expressions of interest next week.