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‘No Excuse’: Hyatt Chairman Resigns Over Epstein Scandal

Shivangi

Feb 17, 2026 6:37 PM IST

Category News

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Synopsis

Thomas Pritzker resigned as executive chairman of Hyatt Hotels after documents were unsealed Thursday revealing his decadeslong relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Pritzker said he regretted and felt sorry that Rishi didn’t disassociate himself from the sex offender more quickly. He will also leave the board of directors in order to maintain the company’s brand and reputation. Mark Hoplamazian, chief executive of Hyatt, has been named the new chairman as the hospitality giant seeks to forge ahead and shift its focus to long-term growth.

Thomas Pritzker steps down as exec chair of Hyatt Hotels over past dealings with Jeffrey Epstein. He acknowledged an error in judgment for not severing his relationship with Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell earlier. Hyatt CEO Mark Hoplamazian is going to serve as the new chairman to help steady the company in its attempt to move beyond the controversy.

• Thomas Pritzker is resigning immediately as executive chairman of Hyatt Hotels
• The billionaire acknowledged “poor judgment” in his connections to Jeffrey Epstein
• New legal filings revealed that he had kept in touch with Epstein long after a 2008 conviction
• CEO Mark Hoplamazian assumes the chairman role to steer the company ahead
• Pritzker will also leave the company’s board of directors later this year

Thomas Pritzker, the billionaire head of Hyatt Hotels for more than two decades, said he had resigned as executive chairman with immediate effect on Monday. His exit follows the disclosure in newly released government documents that he had a longstanding relationship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his confidante Ghislaine Maxwell. Pritzker, 75, wrote to the board that he will not run for re-election to the company’s board of directors at the annual meeting.

Bluntly put, Pritzker just had “a really bad judgment” to maintain his Epstein and Maxwell contacts for so many years. “I am immensely ashamed of what I have done and there is no excuse as to why I could not cut them off sooner. Riley Stewart, as part of a settlement that requires him to leave his role in the company on or before Jan. 1, said he wants to safeguard the reputation of the hotel empire and ensure that the business can concentrate on its future without being distracted by his personal past.

Pressure on Pritzker mounted after the U.S. Justice Department posted millions of internal files connected to Epstein’s network. Those documents indicated that Pritzker kept up the relationship with the financier even after Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to sex crimes.

Pritzker has been a driving force at Hyatt since 2004, guiding the company’s IPO and pushing through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Under his stewardship, the brand expanded and transformed into a more contemporary business. Yet for all its success, one of the reverberations from the Epstein scandal has compelled a major change at the top of the family-run business.

To guarantee stability, Hyatt’s board has named the current CEO, Mark Hoplamazian, to also serve as chairman. The board lauded Pritzker’s more than two decades of service, but noted they are committed to high ethical standards and doing what is best for their shareholders. The change signals the end of an era where the Pritzker family was running a direct show on the hotel chain board.

The episode highlights a wider trend of corporate executives with ties to Epstein being forced to reckon with their past connections. Now that a range of legal documents are being made available, many leading members of business and politics find themselves called to account for having known one of the country’s most powerful financiers. For Hyatt, the aim is to put the controversy behind it and move forward with its global expansion under new leadership.

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