LSE:IHG

IHG Hotels & Resorts has signed long-term franchise agreements to add 11 hotels across Germany, Belgium, and France, strengthening its European expansion.

The portfolio, comprising more than 1,800 rooms, will be converted into IHG’s Holiday Inn, voco, and Garner brands, with openings expected in the first half of 2027. The deal includes six hotels in Germany, four in Belgium, and one in France, located in key city and airport destinations.

The expansion introduces the Garner brand to Belgium and further scales IHG’s presence in Germany and across Europe. The company highlighted that the properties will benefit from its global distribution platform and loyalty program, supporting increased occupancy and international demand.
IHG Hotels & Resorts announced the expansion of its lifestyle brand Atwell in Greater China with the opening of a new hotel in Hefei, following its debut property in Shanghai.

The new Atwell Hefei City Center property features 168 rooms and is designed around the brand’s “new territorial home” concept, combining modern design with local cultural elements to deliver personalized and experience-driven stays.

The move reflects rising demand for lifestyle-oriented travel in China, with IHG emphasizing quality, personalization, and local immersion as key growth drivers.

IHG plans to further expand the Atwell brand into major cities including Suzhou, Nanjing, and Guangzhou, aiming to strengthen its presence in the region’s evolving hospitality market.
IHG targets business travel growth with new digital and partnership strategy

March 26, 2026 — IHG Hotels & Resorts announced a new strategy to strengthen its position in the recovering global business travel market, focusing on three core commercial drivers: network connectivity, digital intelligence, and collaborative partnerships.

The company aims to build a more integrated B2B travel ecosystem by leveraging its extensive hotel network—over 900 properties in Greater China—and a diversified brand portfolio to meet varying corporate travel needs.

IHG is expanding digital tools across the travel journey, including booking platforms, meeting planning applications, and AI-powered concierge systems to enhance efficiency and customer experience.

The strategy also emphasizes loyalty and corporate solutions, with programs such as IHG One Rewards and IHG Business Edge designed to improve flexibility, drive repeat business, and strengthen long-term partnerships with corporate clients.

IHG said the approach will support more efficient, data-driven travel management while unlocking growth opportunities as business travel demand continues to rebound globally.
InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (IHG) announced that the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has opened an investigation into several hospitality groups, including IHG, as well as a hotel data analytics provider.

The investigation concerns suspected sharing of competitively sensitive information among competing hotel chains. IHG stated that it will fully cooperate with the CMA’s inquiries. The regulator emphasized that no assumptions should be made at this stage regarding whether competition law has been breached.

IHG said it will not provide further comment at this time.
InterContinental Hotels Group PLC reported strong full-year 2025 results, with operating profit from reportable segments rising 13% to $1.27 billion and adjusted earnings per share increasing 16% to 501.3 cents .

Revenue from reportable segments grew 7% to $2.47 billion, while total IFRS revenue rose 5% to $5.19 billion. Fee margin expanded by 3.6 percentage points to 64.8%, supported by operating leverage and growth in ancillary fee streams .

Global RevPAR increased 1.5% for the year, with stronger performance in EMEAA (+4.6%) offsetting softer trends in Greater China (-1.6%) .

IHG opened a record 443 hotels during the year, adding 65,100 rooms, and signed 102,100 rooms. The group ended 2025 with 6,963 hotels (1.03 million rooms) and a pipeline of 2,292 hotels, equivalent to 33% of its current system size .

Cash generation remained robust, with adjusted free cash flow of $893 million. Net debt rose to $3.33 billion, reflecting more than $1.1 billion returned to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks .

The Board proposed a final dividend of 125.9 cents per share, taking the full-year dividend to 184.5 cents, up 10%. A new $950 million share buyback programme was also announced, with total shareholder returns expected to exceed $1.2 billion in 2026 .

Chief Executive Elie Maalouf said the company delivered strong financial performance despite turbulent trading conditions, citing record openings, continued brand expansion and confidence in long-term industry growth drivers .
IHG Hotels & Resorts said it will continue expanding its footprint in Greater China in the first half of 2026, highlighting a series of new hotel openings aimed at responding to increasingly diverse travel patterns and more differentiated guest expectations across the region.

IHG noted that travel demand in Greater China is evolving toward more varied stay purposes, locations and lengths of stay, with growing importance of non-tier-one cities as well as leisure- and experience-driven travel. Building on more than five decades in the market, the group plans to strengthen its presence through a balanced mix of luxury, lifestyle and mainstream brands, tailored to local market characteristics.

In the first half of 2026, new openings will include InterContinental Huzhou South Taihu, TFT Chongqing Vignette Collection, Atwell Hefei Downtown, Holiday Inn Resort Ningbo Ninghai, Holiday Inn Jinan Daming Lake and Holiday Inn Express Nanjing Confucius Temple. Additional projects such as InterContinental Taipei and Holiday Inn Shanghai Tourism Zone will target entertainment- and leisure-led short stays, while properties like THE ONE Shanghai Downtown Vignette Collection and Kimpton Shanghai 9 Tree Art Center will focus on urban lifestyle and nature-oriented experiences.

IHG said local character remains a core element of its growth strategy, with new hotels integrating regional culture and heritage into design and guest experiences. The company currently operates or has in the pipeline more than 1,400 hotels across over 200 cities in Greater China, covering 13 brands, and described the upcoming openings as part of a measured, long-term approach focused on quality growth and sustained value creation.
IHG Hotels & Resorts has appointed Wei Manfredi as Senior Vice President of AI and Architecture, reinforcing its focus on AI-driven innovation across its global hospitality platform.

In her new role, Manfredi will lead IHG’s artificial intelligence strategy, strengthen its data and technical architecture, and expand partnerships with leading technology organizations. The company said the appointment supports its goal of using AI to deliver deeper personalization, optimize operations for hotel owners, and empower teams—while ensuring responsible, secure, and practical deployment of advanced technologies.

Manfredi brings experience from major global brands including McDonald’s, Google Cloud, Lululemon, and Visa, and has been recognized as one of the most influential AI leaders in the United States. IHG highlighted that her blend of technology leadership and franchise expertise will help balance innovation with the human-centered nature of hospitality.

The move follows recent technology initiatives at IHG, including the rollout of a new revenue management system across more than 6,700 hotels, deployment of a new property management system in over 2,000 hotels, and expanded use of AI-powered automation and machine translation across its brands.

Source: IHG Hotels & Resorts press release, January 13, 2026
IHG and sedco capital to launch hotel indigo grand square jeddah

IHG Hotels & Resorts has signed a management agreement with a fund managed by SEDCO Capital to open Hotel Indigo Grand Square Jeddah, a 150-key lifestyle property within the upcoming Grand Square development on King Abdulaziz Road. The mixed-use project integrates hospitality, retail and office space, aiming to introduce a modern urban living model in Jeddah.

The hotel will feature neighbourhood-inspired design, high-end amenities and a locally immersive atmosphere aligned with the Hotel Indigo brand. IHG says the signing supports Saudi Arabia’s growing lifestyle travel segment and aligns with Vision 2030 tourism goals.

SEDCO Capital stated that the development strengthens Jeddah’s position as a key urban and tourism hub while contributing to the Kingdom’s real estate and economic transformation. IHG currently operates 46 hotels in Saudi Arabia, with 60 more in the pipeline.
InterContinental Hotels Group continues share buyback programme

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC announced it repurchased 38,752 of its ordinary shares on 4 November 2025 through Merrill Lynch International as part of its ongoing share buyback programme authorized at the company’s 2025 Annual General Meeting.

The purchases were made mainly on the London Stock Exchange at prices ranging between £92.16 and £93.64 per share, with a volume-weighted average price of about £92.71. The company plans to cancel the repurchased shares.

After the transaction, IHG has 151,999,623 ordinary shares in issue, excluding 6,206,782 held in treasury.
InterContinental Hotels Group Buys Back Shares Worth Over £9 Million

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (LSE: IHG) repurchased 79,377 of its ordinary shares on October 31, 2025, through Merrill Lynch International, at an average price of around £92 per share. The highest price paid was £93.66, and the lowest was £91.02. The company plans to cancel the repurchased shares, reducing its outstanding share count to 152,058,090 (excluding 6,206,782 treasury shares). The buyback was executed under the authority granted at the May 2025 AGM as part of the ongoing share repurchase program.