Hotel group Hilton plans $1.25bn IPO Hilton Worldwide has filed for an initial public offering (IPO) of up to $1.25 billion (£791 million) as owner Blackstone Group looks to take advantage of a reviving hotel industry. Blackstone took the group private in 2007 in a $26.7bn deal, one of the largest buyouts that preceded the 2008 global financial crisis. The hotel industry has been steadily improving as more people travel and businesses recover, allowing hotels to increase prices. Founded in 1919 by Conrad Hilton, great grandfather of American socialite Paris Hilton, pictured, Worldwide's brands include Conrad, Doubletree, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn and Waldorf Astoria. It has about 4,000 hotels, resorts and timeshare properties, comprising 665,667 rooms in some 90 countries. The IPO market has surged this year as rising stock prices and low interest rates have enticed investors. Hilton plans to use the proceeds from the offering to repay debt and for other general corporate purposes, it said yesterday.