A neutral tritopic macrocycle 1 was obtained by condensation of a diacid dichloride 2 with a diamine 3. 1 contains three binding sites: two for anions by hydrogen bonding and one for cations by ether oxygen atoms. The selective binding of LiCl and CaCl2 has been studied by NMR and MS techniques. 1 is the first host to form a supramolecular complex with an ion triplet: 1·CaCl2.
