GreenTree Hospitality Group (NYSE: GHG), ranked among the world’s Top 10 hotel groups by number of hotels, today officially opened GreenTree Hotel Johor Bahru, the first GreenTree-branded hotel in Malaysia and in Southeast Asia. The ribbon-cutting ceremony was oƯiciated by Mr Alex Xu, Chairman of GreenTree Hospitality Group, together with Tan Sri Daing Malik Daing Rahaman, Chairman of Malpakat Group, Mr Char Hon Loong, Group Managing Director of Malpakat Group, and Tan Sri Dato’ Azman Shah Haron, Chairman of Holiday Villa Hotels & Resorts.

The hotel is owned and developed by Malpakat Group and operates under the GreenTree brand through a licensing agreement with Holiday Villa Hotels & Resorts, a Malaysian international hospitality group and GreenTree Hospitality Group’s appointed licensee in
Malaysia. Together, GreenTree and Holiday Villa provide brand standards, technology, an extended reservation network, service quality standards and loyalty programmes, drawing on their respective expertise, including GreenTree’s operations and support infrastructure in China and the United States.

A premium hotel for business and leisure

Located in Bandar Baru Permas Jaya in eastern Johor Bahru, the hotel offers 206 rooms and suites, a 500-seat ballroom, five meeting rooms and a boardroom, an infinity pool with pool bar, a gym, a business lounge and The Bough Café on Level 7. The property enjoys direct access to the Eastern Dispersal Link (EDL) Expressway, placing Johor Bahru city centre, the Johor–Singapore Causeway and the city’s main commercial and retail districts within minutes. The development of the Johor–Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) and the forthcoming Johor Bahru–Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link are expected to further strengthen demand in the corridor.

The GreenTree model

“Johor Bahru is the right place to begin GreenTree’s journey in Southeast Asia,” said Mr Alex Xu, Chairman of GreenTree Hospitality Group. “Our core mission is to serve our franchisees — more than ninety per cent of our business is done together with them. GreenTree’s model has not changed in more than twenty years. It rests on five things: the best service for our guests; effective and strong local management; intelligent systems that give guests and owners a smart, seamless interface; strict discipline on capital and operating costs; and a wide reservation network with a strong Asian footprint that brings guests to our hotels.
Together they deliver the best financial returns to hotel owners. We thank Malpakat Group for their confidence in our brand, and we look forward to bringing GreenTree to Kuala Lumpur and other major cities in Malaysia and the region.”

Partnership built on a shared track record
Malpakat Group has owned the 345-room Holiday Villa Johor Bahru City Centre since 2016; GreenTree Hotel Johor Bahru is its second hotel and extends a relationship of nearly a decade with Holiday Villa. GreenTree and Holiday Villa formed their partnership in 2022 to expand both brands beyond their home markets — bringing Holiday Villa to China, where the five-star Holiday ViVilla Xijiang Miao Village in Guizhou opened recently and Holiday ViVilla Shanghai is forthcoming, and bringing GreenTree to Malaysia. Together, the GreenTree family and Holiday Villa are present in China, the United States, Malaysia, Indonesia, Qatar and
Saudi Arabia.

“GreenTree Hotel Johor Bahru reflects Malpakat’s long-term commitment to Johor and to hospitality as a core business,” said Mr Char Hon Loong, Group Managing Director of Malpakat Group. “With GreenTree’s global platform and Holiday Villa’s local expertise, we are confident the hotel will become a preferred choice for travellers from Malaysia, Singapore and beyond.”

Malaysia as a regional gateway
GreenTree and Holiday Villa regard Malaysia as their gateway to the wider Southeast Asian market. Kuala Lumpur is the next priority for the GreenTree brand, and the partners are evaluating opportunities in other major Malaysian and regional cities.

About GreenTree Hospitality Group
GreenTree Hospitality Group Ltd. (NYSE: GHG) is a leading hospitality and restaurant management group headquartered in Shanghai. As of 30 June 2026, the Group had 4,615 hotels and some 330,000 rooms in operation in close to 400 cities, across economy, midscale, upper-midscale and premium segments, with a further 1,278 hotels contracted or under development. More than ninety per cent of GreenTree’s business is conducted with its franchisees, and its loyalty programme has more than 100 million members. In its latest annual ranking of the world’s largest hotel companies (The List, July/August 2026, data as of 31 December 2025), HOTELS magazine ranked GreenTree 10th worldwide by number of hotels and 12th by number of rooms, and the China Hospitality Association ranked it the fourth-largest hospitality company in China in 2025. Founded in 2004 by Mr Alex Xu together with American investors, the GreenTree family of companies is present in China and the United States, and, through Holiday Villa, in Malaysia, Indonesia, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
www.998.com

About Holiday Villa Hotels & Resorts

Founded in 1987 and headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Holiday Villa Hotels & Resorts operates 26 hotels and resorts with about 4,500 rooms across Malaysia, Indonesia, China, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, spanning city hotels, beach resorts and pool villas under the Holiday Villa and five-star Holiday ViVilla brands. GreenTree is a partner in the group alongside its founder and Chairman, Tan Sri Dato’ Azman Shah Haron.

www.holidayvillahotels.com

About Malpakat Group

Johor-based Malpakat Group started out as a subcontractor and grew to be a construction and property development group, now furthering the group’s business ventures with a focus on F&B, hospitality and asset management. It has operated Holiday Villa Johor Bahru City Centre since 2016 and is the developer and owner of GreenTree Hotel Johor Bahru.