Our Team

LIHUI (KITTY) LO

President

Ms. Lo is the Chairman of Manhattan Hotel Group. With more than three decades of business experience, she drives superior returns through her investment and operational expertise.

Throughout her career, Ms. Lo has founded several businesses and successfully taken many of them public. Prior to being an entrepreneur, she was a prominent asset manager with more than $1 billion in assets managed. She has also published two books, “How to Establish a Hotel Empire in the U.S.” and “How to Trade with Zero Risk: Hedging Stocks and Bonds.”

Ms. Lo holds a Certificate in GMP from Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration and an MBA from Colorado Christian University. She also teaches investment, hedge fund, and arbitrage at Jinwen University of Science and Technology.

WEILIN SHEN

Head of Asia Private Equity
Mr. Shen is the Head of Asia Private Equity. He has over 30 years of M&A experience. Through his extensive experience in financial services and in-depth knowledge of the financial markets, Mr. Shen holds a key role in MHG’s investment strategy and outlook. With over 25 years of market research and strategic analysis experience, including the founding of his own successful companies and research firm, Mr. Shen leads MHG’s growth and fundraising efforts in Asia.

CAROLINE PEREL

Senior Advisor
Caroline Perel is a Senior Advisor to Manhattan Hotel Group. Ms. Perel has over 25 years of experience in the lodging industry spanning a variety of disciplines, including acquisitions, development, capital raising and asset and revenue management. Ms. Perel has served in several senior roles in her career, including as Chief Development Officer of NewcrestImage, a leading owner / operator of select service hotels, and Managing Director of Lodging Investments for Civitas Capital, where she invested in the acquisition and development of over $300 million of lodging assets.

DAVID PEREL

Senior Advisor
David Perel is a Senior Advisor to Manhattan Hotel Group. Mr. Perel is an experienced financial and investment professional, with focus on real estate investment and development for the past 15 years. He has had a broad variety of exposure across transaction and capital structures in his career in the financial services industry, which included a successful career on Wall Street prior to his transition to real estate and lodging. Mr. Perel was most recently Chief Investment Officer for NewcrestImage and prior to that was Managing Director of Lodging Investments at Civitas Capital.

CHAO TARNG CHENG

Vice Chairman

Dr. Cheng is Vice Chairman of Manhattan Hotel Group. His unique background adds diversity to the team and allows him to bring a balanced approach to investing.

Dr. Cheng has been a practicing physician since 1971, and founded Medicor Cardiology, a successful cardiology practice, in 1977. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology and an Assistant Professor at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, NJ.

In addition to his lifelong career in medicine, Dr. Cheng has built an impressive track record in real estate and hospital investments.

JAMES WU

Chief Operating Officer

Dr. Wu is the Chief Operating Officer of Manhattan Hotel Group. He is an accomplished executive with a unique background in technology entrepreneurship.

Prior to joining Manhattan Hotel Group, Dr. Wu served in senior executive positions at BroadVision Inc., a global business communications provider based in Silicon Valley. At BroadVision, he led the development of several mobile and web applications in Cloud Computing and E-commerce. He also founded AmazingBnb, an Asia-based online travel booking website, in 2016.

Dr. Wu holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from StonyBrook University and a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from National Taiwan University. He currently serves as CFO of the Silicon Valley Chinese American Computer & Commerce Association.

INA KAO

Principal
Ms. Kao is a Principal of Manhattan Hotel Group. She is the main asset manager for all MHG hotels and is involved in the company’s investment strategy. She oversees all renovation projects and specializes in property cost control to optimize the bottom line. Prior to joining Manhattan Hotel Group, she worked at Union Bank and PFM Financial Advisors. Ms. Kao holds a Masters in Finance from London Business School and a B.S. in Business Administration from Babson College.

IRENE KAO

Principal
Ms. Kao is a Principal of Manhattan Hotel Group. She drives the company’s investment strategy and evaluates its acquisitions and dispositions. Prior to joining Manhattan Hotel Group, she worked at Credit Suisse and Interstate Hotels & Resorts. Ms. Kao holds a B.A. in Financial Economics, magna cum laude, from Columbia University. She currently serves on the board of the Autism Hospitality Foundation.