KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 5):  I-Bhd will sign a strategic alliance agreement with Hilton International for the planned development of a four-star hotel within the RM5 billion i-City township in Shah Alam, Selangor.

In a statement today, I-Bhd, the developer of the 29ha (72-acre) i-City, said it would sign the agreement with Hilton this Tuesday (December 9).

“The four-star Hilton hotel in i-City will be part of the RM1 billion investment property portfolio that I-Bhd is establishing in order to provide a recurring income stream for the group,” I-Bhd said in a statement today.

The four-star hotel will add to i-City’s existing hospitality outlets.

I-Bhd and Best Western International had recently started operations at the the Best Western i-City Hotel. This is the first hotel within i-City.

I-Bhd is a closely-watched company. According to Insider Asia, once i-City is fully developed, I-Bhd expects to derive half of its earnings from recurring income arising from its leisure and property investments.

The Insider Asia's report was published in The Edge Financial on November 24 this year.
 
I-Bhd's financials have improved. The company's net profit rose to RM14.24 million in the third quarter ended September 30, 2014 from RM2.68 milion a year earlier.

Nine-month net profit was higher at RM39.75 million versus RM14.39 million a year earlier.

Today, I-Bhd shares rose 0.5 sen or 0.8% at 12.30pm to settle at 62.5 sen for  a market capitalisation of RM455 million. The stock had fallen 2% this year compared to the FBM KLCI's 6% decline.
 
I-Bhd's latest net assets per share stood at RM1.20.