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The Ukrainian capital is under increased bombardment from Russian forces, following Russia’s invasion of the independent country on Feb. 24. According to the New York Times, “Ukrainian forces were battling Russian troops on the outskirts of Kyiv, a city of 2.8 million people.”

The White House released a statement stating that the United States and its allies have instigated sanctions that will “impose severe costs on Russia’s largest financial institutions and will further isolate Russia from the global financial system.” The European Union, according to the Wall Street Journal, announced “sanctions Friday that will cut 70% of Russia’s banking system off from international financial markets and place limits on the amount of money Russian elites can hold in the EU.”

Hotel-casino owner Las Vegas Sands Corp. has exited the Las Vegas market following the $6.25 billion sale of The Venetian Resort Las Vegas to new owners, private-equity firm Apollo Global Management and real estate management trust VICI Properties, according to a Sands news release. The Venetian opened in 1999 on the site of the former Sands Casino Resort and was put on sale in October 2020, just a few months before the passing of former Sands’ chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson. Sands will continue to operate assets in Macao and Singapore.

The sale brings to an end Sands’ ownership in Las Vegas that began in 1989. Newspaper The Nevada Independent reports the sale went through two “contentious” licensing approval meetings earlier this month in which concerns were raised concerns “about the private equity firm’s relationship with controversial founder Leon Black and its former ownership of Caesars Entertainment.”

During an analyst call for its full-year 2021 earnings, executives at real estate investment trust RLJ Lodging said booking trends will further boost the firm’s “urban-centric portfolio” as the year progresses. Leslie Hale, president and CEO, said business transient and group bookings at hotels in the company's urban portfolio are trending up in February, Hotel News Now’s Trevor Simpson reports. That success is motivating executives to pursue expansion of RLJ's portfolio in urban markets as the company looks to be a net acquirer in 2022.

The Bethesda, Maryland-based hotel firm reported pro-forma revenue per available room of $101.33 during the fourth quarter of 2021, “representing over 75% of the comparable period of 2019.”

A September 2020 scheme launched during the pandemic in the United Kingdom to provide grants to companies to employ young persons has been branded “chaotic” by the United Kingdom government’s Public Accounts Committee. Grants of 1,500 pounds sterling ($2,014) were allocated to offset administration costs, and the PAC is recommending this money be returned if it has not been used.

According to the PAC, the Department of Work & Pensions, the scheme's instigator, claims 168,000 people have been supported by the program, not the 250,000 initially envisaged. The cost of the scheme — estimated at 1.9 billion pounds — does not represent good value. The PAC said the scheme’s “early delivery was chaotic” and the DWP “neglected to put in place basic management information that would be expected for a multi-billion-pound grant program.”

Marriott International announced a deal with owner Cola Holdings and The Westbury Hotel to bring the St. Regis brand to London with a hotel that will undergo a renovation valued at 90 million pounds, according to a news release.

The St. Regis London, at the junction of upscale shopping streets Bond Street and Conduit Street, is due to open in 2023 in the former Westbury Hotel. One floor, the building’s eighth, will be added, at which point the property will have 196 rooms.

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