And the saga continues…This morning, Starwood Hotels shared the news that its Chinese suitor just submitted yet another bid for the chain, this time offering a total of $82.75 per share — or a total of roughly $14 billion in cash. That represents a huge jump over Anbang’s previous bid of $78 per share. It’s also a significant increase over Marriott’s latest offer of $79.53, which is actually now worth a bit less following a drop in Marriott’s share price.To recap, here’s the Starwood merger events as they’ve unfolded to date:May 1, 2015 — Rumors of IHG preparing a bid to acquire StarwoodOctober 28, 2015 — Starwood CEO Adam Aron mentions the possibility of a sale during an earnings callNovember 16, 2015 — Marriott announces its intention to acquire StarwoodNovember 20, 2015 — Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson addresses questions about Marriott and SPGJanuary 22, 2016 — TPG chatted SPG with Marriott’s Vice President of LoyaltyFebruary 24, 2016 — TPG shares plans to attend a Marriott loyalty forum in Los AngelesMarch 14, 2016 — Starwood and Marriott acknowledge Anbang’s bidMarch 18, 2016 — Starwood accepts Anbang’s bidMarch 18, 2016 — Starwood CEO Tom Mangas addresses the latest acquisition newsMarch 21, 2016 — Marriott Outbids Anbang with Latest Offer for StarwoodMarch 22, 2016 — Here’s What Marriott Plans to Do with Starwood Preferred GuestAn Anbang acquisition would allow SPG to remain an independent program. Above, what Marriott plans to do with SPG if its merger goes through.According to the Starwood release, the company’s board has not changed its recommendation for Starwood to merge with Marriott— if that ends up being the case, we’ll see SPG eventually folded into Marriott Rewards. Still, will Marriott submit yet another bid to top Anbang? I imagine we’ll have a better idea within the next few days…Which suitor are you rooting for?Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.[card card-name=‘Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express’ card-id=‘22034416’ type=‘javascript’ bullet-id=‘1’]
