The brevity of the bid speculation aimed at Intercontinental Hotels Group last month gave the impression that it was probably no more than rumour-mongering designed to ramp the shares and turn a quick buck for the perpetrators (Dominic Walsh writes). If Accor, the soi-disant suitor, really had looked at its British rival, it hadn’t been looking very seriously.
Yet a putative entente cordiale between IHG and Accor is far from a new concept. As long ago as 2014, Marcato Capital, a pushy American hedge fund, put pressure on IHG to consider a tie-up with one of its peers, providing a list of potential partners including Accor. Marriott International’s mega-merger with Starwood Hotels two years later sparked fresh speculation, yet little or nothing seems to have
