DoubleDragon plans SGD 300 million Hotel101 Singapore REIT

MANILA — DoubleDragon Corp. plans to establish a Singapore special-purpose vehicle that will sponsor a SGD 300 million hospitality real estate investment trust, or REIT, as the Philippine property developer builds a mechanism to recycle capital into Hotel101’s global expansion.

The company’s board approved the creation of DD Hotel101 Worldwide One on July 31, according to a disclosure filed with the Philippine Stock Exchange. DoubleDragon expects the proposed trust to become the fourth pure-hospitality REIT listed on the Singapore Exchange, subject to regulatory, listing, and other necessary approvals.

The plan could give Hotel101 a recurring source of capital by moving selected income-producing hotel units into a publicly traded vehicle. For investors and the wider economy, the structure could help finance more overseas hotels without requiring DoubleDragon to retain every asset on its balance sheet, while potentially generating foreign-currency earnings and supporting the international expansion of a Philippine hospitality brand.

Proposed capital-recycling platform

DD Hotel101 Worldwide One will hold a diversified portfolio composed exclusively of standardized Hotel101 units carved out from selected developments in different countries.

The proposed platform may include sub-REIT companies, depending on the structure considered most efficient in each jurisdiction.

DoubleDragon said the vehicle would establish a permanent capital-recycling mechanism to complement Hotel101’s individual per-unit property sales worldwide. Under such an arrangement, proceeds from placing completed or income-generating units into a REIT could be redeployed into new developments and expansion.

The initiative is also intended to create an additional recurring revenue stream as Hotel101 Global prepares to enter the third phase of its expansion through an asset-light, property-technology licensing platform.

DoubleDragon said a listed Hotel101 REIT could make its licensing model more attractive to established property developers in other countries by providing projects with a potential route to monetize selected units after development.

The proposed REIT will initially have assets worth SGD 300 million. DoubleDragon said this size would allow the vehicle to qualify for an exemption from the requirement for three years of operating history.

Under SGX Mainboard Rule 210, REITs and business trusts that meet a SGD 300 million market-capitalization test but lack historical financial information may apply for listing if they can demonstrate that they will generate operating revenue immediately upon listing. A listing would therefore remain subject to satisfying SGX requirements and securing approval from the exchange and other relevant authorities.

After listing, DoubleDragon plans to continuously inject selected Hotel101 units from projects in different parts of the world, expanding the REIT’s recurring-income asset base.

The company intends to allocate about 20 percent to 30 percent of selected Hotel101 projects worldwide for possible infusion into Hotel101 REITs listed on major stock exchanges.

DoubleDragon said the planned Singapore vehicle would form the first part of a broader H101 REIT platform that it eventually intends to list in other major financial markets.

Singapore hospitality market

DoubleDragon identified CDL Hospitality Trusts, Far East Hospitality Trust, and CapitaLand Ascott Trust as the three existing hospitality REITs on the Singapore Exchange.

SGX materials also classify Acrophyte Hospitality Trust within the broader hospitality and lodging REIT segment, indicating that the description of the proposed Hotel101 vehicle as the fourth “pure hospitality” REIT reflects DoubleDragon’s own classification.

Singapore had 42 listed REITs and property trusts with a combined market capitalization of about SGD 99 billion as of the first quarter of 2026, according to an SGX research chartbook. The asset class represented about 9 percent of Singapore’s listed equity market.

The proposed vehicle would give investors exposure to a geographically diversified portfolio of uniform Hotel101 rooms rather than a single hotel or market.

Licensing-led expansion

DoubleDragon said the REIT plan would support Hotel101’s transition to the third phase of its “hyper growth” strategy through licensing.

The initiative forms part of the sequence of measures needed to pursue Hotel101’s target of developing 1 million standardized rooms across more than 100 countries.

The company aims to make Hotel101 the world’s largest single-brand hotel chain by applying what it describes as an asset-light, property-technology hospitality model.

Under the strategy, third-party developers could adopt the standardized Hotel101 format and operating system, allowing the brand to expand while limiting the amount of capital DoubleDragon must directly invest in each property.

DoubleDragon said the licensing approach would generate long-term recurring revenue and complement its existing portfolio of hard assets in the Philippines.

The group is also pursuing other capital initiatives to strengthen its balance sheet and advance its 2035 vision.

Hotel portfolio expands overseas

DoubleDragon currently operates the 518-room Hotel101-Manila and the 606-room Hotel101-Fort in the Philippines, both of which the company said continue to record high occupancy.

Hotel101-Madrid opened in March 2026 as the first Hotel101-branded property operating outside the Philippines.

The 680-room Madrid hotel has begun generating recurring revenue from operations since March.

DoubleDragon said Hotel101-Madrid achieved 100 percent occupancy during a record single day, when revenue exceeded EUR 100,000.

The company said the performance demonstrated strong demand for the Spanish property and indicated its potential to generate substantial annual recurring hotel revenue.

Hotel101-Niseko, a 482-room property in Hokkaido, Japan, is scheduled to open in December 2026 and is expected to generate recurring revenue denominated in Japanese yen.

DoubleDragon expects 2026 to deliver its largest number of hotel-room openings in a single year, with 2,229 additional rooms scheduled to become operational.

The total consists of 680 rooms at the recently opened Hotel101-Madrid, 519 rooms in Davao, 548 rooms in Cebu, and 482 rooms at Hotel101-Niseko.

Recurring-income push

DoubleDragon expects to begin generating a higher volume of recurring revenue in 2026 from provincial community-mall leasing, industrial-warehouse leasing, office leasing, and its hospitality portfolio in the Philippines and overseas.

The proposed REIT would add another source of recurring income while allowing the group to recover capital from selected Hotel101 units and deploy it into new developments.

REITs generally hold income-producing real estate and distribute a significant portion of their earnings to investors. For sponsors, they can provide a way to monetize mature assets while retaining a continuing economic interest through management, sponsorship, or ownership stakes.

For the public, the success of the model will depend on the quality and earnings of the assets transferred to the trust, the terms of related-party transactions, debt levels, management fees, and the ability of the hotels to sustain occupancy and room revenue across economic cycles.

Philippine brand goes global

DoubleDragon said the Hotel101 team remains committed to the work, entrepreneurial discipline, and perseverance required to establish the brand in multiple jurisdictions.

The company said its long-term objective is to build a global Filipino hotel brand that can bring pride and recognition to the Philippines.

DoubleDragon expects Hotel101’s overseas growth eventually to become a major generator of U.S. dollar inflows for the Philippine economy.

Hotel101 Global made history in 2025 when it became the first Filipino company with a subsidiary listed on the U.S. Nasdaq, according to DoubleDragon.

The company said Hotel101 marked another milestone in 2026 by becoming the first Filipino hotel-chain brand to operate overseas.

DoubleDragon’s total assets currently stand at PHP 225.3 billion.