French hotel group AccorHotel said on Wednesday it had agreed to buy Canada's FRHI, owners of the Fairmont, Raffles and Swissotel luxury hotel groups, from its current Qatari and Saudi owners.

The acquisition, which covers 155 hotels and resorts, will make AccorHotel a world leader in luxury hotels, it said, adding that it would pay for FRHI with a mix of a capital increase and $840 million (768 million euros) in cash.