Miami-based CGI purchased the lease rights from the Trumps for $375 million
As Donald Trump’s real-estate empire comes under pressure from a $355 million civil-fraud verdict, one of its most recent sales looks particularly well timed.
The Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., was a favorite Republican meeting spot during the Trump presidency, attracting lobbyists, lawmakers and others with business before the administration. After the Trumps faced criticism that they were flouting government-ethics laws by profiting from the property, they put up for sale the long-term lease rights for the hotel in the former Old Post Office.
In 2022, the Trumps sold those rights to Miami-based investor CGI Merchant Group for $375 million—a price that was tens of millions of dollars more than the other offers, according to people familiar with the matter. CGI rebranded the hotel as a Waldorf Astoria.
This month, the new owner defaulted on a $285 million loan related to the property, according to people familiar with the matter. The missed payments on that loan reflect higher interest rates and the above-market price the firm paid the Trumps, industry executives say.
“Corruption machine stops generating money when it’s no longer a corruption machine.”