 Pearl-Continental Hotel in Karachi | |
| Formerly | InterContinental Hotels |
|---|---|
| Company type | Public |
| PSX: PSEL KSE 100 component | |
| Industry | Hospitality |
| Founder | Government of Pakistan |
| Headquarters | , Pakistan |
Number of locations | Karachi,Lahore,Rawalpindi,Bhurban,Muzaffarabad,Malam Jabba,Skardu,Hunza and upcoming properties inMirpur andMultan |
Area served | Pakistan |
Key people |
|
| Revenue |  Rs. 15.04 billion (US$54 million)[1] (2024) |
| Rs. 370.13 million (US$1.3 million)[1] (2024) | |
| Rs. 425.46 million (US$1.5 million)[1] (2024) | |
| Total assets |  Rs. 62.26 billion (US$220 million)[1] (2024) |
| Total equity | Rs. 45.89 billion (US$160 million)[1] (2024) |
Number of employees | 1,704[1] (2024) |
| Parent | Hashoo Group |
| Website | psl pchotels |
Pakistan Services Limited, trading asPearl-Continental Hotels & Resorts (also abbreviated toPC Hotels), is a Pakistanihotel chain based inIslamabad. It owns properties inKarachi,Lahore,Rawalpindi,Bhurban,Muzaffarabad andMalam Jabba, and under construction inMultan,Attabad Lake,Sukkur, andMirpur.
Pakistan Services Limited was originally founded as astate-owned company in 1958. Later, it came under the ownership of Haroon family.[2]
The first Pearl-Continental Hotel (Intercontinental Hotel at the time - part of an international chain) in Karachi was inaugurated by PresidentMuhammad Ayub Khan on 10 May 1964 and was the first five-star hotel in Pakistan. It was a member of theLeading Hotels of the World for over a decade.[3][4] A new hotel was built forLahore andRawalpindi in 1967[5][6] with another branch opening inPeshawar in 1975.[7]
In 2021,Hashoo group also launched achain offour-star hotels under the brand name PC Legacy.[8] The PC Legacy Naran is functional and operating inNaran and another opened inNasirabad,Hunza in 2023.[9][relevant? –discuss]
Two firms, Dawood Jan Muhammad andAKD Holding, have collectively acquired approximately 56% of the shares in Pakistan Services Limited (PSL), the company that owns and manages the Pearl Continental Hotels chain.[10][11]
This acquisition, which took place on July 14, 2025, involved both firms purchasing shares at Rs700 per share. Dawood Jan Muhammad acquired 28% (worth over Rs6.37 billion), and AKD Holding acquired 27.9% (worth over Rs6.3 billion), bringing the total combined value of these purchases to over Rs12 billion.[10][11]
This significant 56% stake is considered sufficient to take over the management of PSL's board, leading to speculation about a potential change in control. The acquisition followed the postponement of a PSL board meeting on June 30, and the company's share price had seen a notable increase between July 11 and July 20.[10][11]
In 1971, when the Pearl-Continental (orKhyber Intercontinental at the time) construction was initiated in Peshawar, workers digging underground to form its foundation discovered old human, elephant and horse bones. Archaeologists discovered that the Hotel was the site of a fierce battle between the armies ofMahmud of Ghazni andJayapala in theBattle of Peshawar in the year 1001.[12]
On 11 May 2019, at least eight people including four hotel employees, one soldier and threeterrorists were killed in a terror attack targeting the Pearl Continental inGwadar,Balochistan, Pakistan.[13][14][15][16][17]
On Thursday night 26 May 2022, the roof of the 5-star property collapsed at Karachi's Pearl-Continental Hotel.[18] According to the reports one person was killed and three others injured after the ceiling of thefive-star hotel caved in on top of them. The incident occurred inside the Marco Polo Hall at the hotel where an event was under way.[19]
