For $400 million, an Israeli real estate tycoon sells a diamond mine to Chinese investors.

According to Russia's "Kommersant" daily, Israeli real estate mogul Lev Leviev has sold his 18 percent ownership in Angola's Catoca diamond mine to China's Sonangol International for $400 million. Adhunter

Leviev bought his stake in the mine for $20 million in the 1990s, according to Globes, an Israeli business news publication.

Alrosa, Russia's state-owned diamond company, owns 32.8 percent of Catoca. According to the Globes, Alrosa CEO Fyodor Andreyev has informed Russia's Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin about the transaction.

The transaction is expected to close in June. According to Globes, Sonangol will become the first Chinese corporation to acquire a portion of a diamond mine when the deal is completed.

According to Globes, Catoca made $527 million in revenue from raw diamonds in 2010 and a net profit of $111 million.

Leviev is an international investor in residential real estate, shopping malls, energy, fashion, telecommunications, and media, according to Wikipedia. Leviev's market worth in 2007 was $8 billion.

With the advent of the global financial crisis in 2007-2008, the business's value plummeted, with company debt estimated totalling $5.5 billion in September 2009. In 1996, Leviev paid $400 million for a 60 percent stake in the company.

According to Wikipedia, Leviev, 55, is a Bukharian-Israeli millionaire businessman with a net worth of $1.5 billion following the global financial crisis of 2008.

Leviev has been a major philanthropist for Jewish interests in Eastern Europe and Israel, and has been hailed as one of the wealthiest Jews in the world. Protests have erupted over his diamond mining activities in Angola and his interests in Israeli settlements.

Leviev was born in 1956 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan Soviet Socialist Republic, and now lives in England.

He is the current chairman and majority shareholder of Africa-Israel. Africa-Israel is on the verge of bankruptcy, and has requested a debt restructuring of NIS 21 billion.

According to Wikipedia, Africa-Israel completed a $230 million, 5,800-unit project at Modi'in Illit, a West Bank ultra-Orthodox settlement, in 2005.

Africa-Israel launched a premium jewelry store on London's Old Bond Street in early 2007, and was eyeing billion-dollar investments in the Far East, Argentina, Brazil, and Russia. The global subprime mortgage crisis burst a few months later, and the value of Africa-real Israel's estate interests fell, particularly in New York, where it had made significant investments.

 

In Asia, Starwood is rushing to open new hotels.

SINGAPORE (AP) - Ignoring forecasts of a global economic downturn, Starwood Hotels & Properties Worldwide Inc. has signed agreements in Asia to open four multi-million-dollar luxury resorts between December and 2011.

Hotel Four Points Kuching

The 156-room Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa is located on the private island of Furana Fushi in the Republic of Maldives; the 421-room Four Points by Sheraton Kuching is located in Kuching, East Malaysia; the 330-room Le Meridien Qingdao is located in Qingdao, China; and the 345-room Le Meridien Chongqing is located in Chongqing, China.

"Travelers are familiar with the Sheraton brand, and the addition of this great property to our exquisite collection of higher upscale properties across the world provides leisure travelers even more reasons to love us," says Miguel Ko, President, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Asia Pacific.

W Retreat & Spa, a Maldives developer, is teaming with Starwood. "The Maldives is the world's first W resort, and it's been creating waves since September 2006," Ko adds.

A joint venture between a Starwood affiliate and Universal Enterprises Private Ltd., the parent firm of Full Moon Private Ltd., owns the W resort.

The Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa will open on December 1st.

Vickers, Colin

Colin Vickers, General Manager of Four Points by Sheraton in East Malaysia, is optimistic that his hotel guests would "enjoy a comfortable, pleasant, and uncomplicated stay, all at an honest value." The resort will be Kuching's first international hotel in 15 years, according to Vickers.

The hotel will open in December and will be Starwood's first in Southeast Asia.

Le Meridien, a Starwood brand, continues to expand throughout China and Asia Pacific. In 2011, the Le Meridian Qingdao and Le Meridien Chongqing hotels will open. In addition, Starwood is partnering with China's Wanda Group to open a Sheraton in Wuxi and a Weston in Taiyuan.

"We're ecstatic to launch two spectacular Le Meridien properties in Qingdao and Chongqing, two of China's most vibrant cities," adds Starwood's Ko. "Chongqing is Western China's largest inland river port and one of the country's most established industrial hubs."

Quingdao "attracts vacationers with its rich cultural legacy and good economic strength," according to Ko.

"It's no surprise that visitors and business travelers are going to Thailand and China in droves, drawn by these two nations' beautiful landscapes, vibrant metropolises, and exquisite resort enclaves," says Eva Ziegler, Brand Leader of Le Meridien.

White Plains, New York is home to Starwood's North American headquarters.