How Gujarati Immigrants Built a Hotel Legacy From Handshake Loans

Early Gujarati immigrants built a hotel legacy in the United States through a system of handshake loans, beginning with Kanji Desai. Desai secretly crossed borders and leased the first Indian-operated hotel in Sacramento during World War II internment.

Desai then used handshake loans to help newcomers lease properties and bring their families to the U.S. This created a proven path to ownership that spread across the nation.

The practice relied on trust within the community, allowing successive waves of Gujarati immigrants to enter the hotel industry without formal credit. Over decades, this network grew into a significant presence in American hospitality.