Asia Real Estate People in the News 2021-07-12

A top level move at a division of mainland real estate giant Evergrande Group leads our collection of personnel news this week, as the company’s property management division brings in a long-term executive to provide new leadership in the midst of a stock slide.

Also introducing some new faces are SGX-listed Singapore Press Holdings, JLL, Colliers International and WeWork, while CBRE and Knight Frank have announced promotions in Singapore.

Evergrande Property Services Group has named Zhen Litao as its new chairman as of 8 July, according to a stock exchange announcement. Zhen, who has been with Evergrande Group since 2009, replaces Zhao Changlong, who has been re-designated as deputy chairman and general manager of the company while retaining his title as an executive director. Zhen has served as an executive vice president of Evergrande Real Estate Group since October of last year, when he gave up the president position in favour of Ke Peng. Evergrande Property Services, the real estate management division of the Evergrande Group debuted on the Hong Kong stock exchange in December of last year and has seen its stock slide by 53 percent to close at HK$8.82 per share on Friday after peaking at HK$19.10 in February.

Media conglomerate turned property investor Singapore Press Holdings appointed former PwC Singapore executive chairman Yeoh Oon Jin as an independent director on its board, effective from 9 July, according to an announcement to the stock exchange. Now 60, Yeoh retired from the accounting giant this year and currently serves as chairman of the Singapore Land Authority and vice chairman of the Singapore Business Federation. At SPH, Yeoh will also be part of the company’s executive committee and the audit committee.

JLL announced last week that it has appointed Lata Pillai as head of its capital markets team for India, effective from 15 July. Pillai joins the property consultancy from India’s Yes Bank, where she has served as group president of urban infrastructure since 2019. The Mumbai-based executive also spent more than 11 years with Deutsche Bank and was with ICICI Bank for more than 18 years. In her new role, Pillai will lead the company’s capital markets team in India, including its services to cross-border investors.

WeWork announced earlier this month that it has hired flexible office veteran Matthew Chisholm as head of real estate for Pacific. Formerly chief operating officer of boutique serviced office provider Arcc Spaces, Chisholm is now tasked with growing WeWork’s growth in the region as the company refocuses its business toward collaborative ventures with landlords as it continues to strive for profitability and a public market listing after its failed attempt at an initial public offering in 2019.

Colliers International has hired Dorothy Chow as an executive director with its valuation and advisory services team for Asia, according to a company announcement on 5 July. After 23 years with JLL in Hong Kong, where she served most recently as a senior director, Chow will now be reporting to Colliers’s head of valuation and advisory for Asia, CK Lau. Colliers noted that three additional team mates will be joining its valuations team together with Chow.

Knight Frank announced late last week that Georgina Atkinson has been promoted to associate partner with the company’s residential team, where she has responsibility for the US market serving clients in Asia Pacific and the Middle East. Based in Singapore, Atkinson has now been with Knight Frank since 2017 and previously served as a manager for Asia Pacific with the residential sales team. Earlier, the Oxford Brooke University graduate had spent more than six years with UK residential developer Berkeley Group.

CBRE announced recently that Li Ling Ng has been promoted to head of client care for Asia, after being named a senior director with customer relationship division of the company in April. Having led CBRE’s client care efforts in Singapore since 2017, Ng will now be in charge of service delivery to the company’s top investment clients across Asia. Formerly a consultant with Deloitte, Ng joined CBRE as a senior marketing executive in 2014.

If you know of other Asia real estate professionals changing their jobs, getting promoted or just doing something exciting, please contact us here at Mingtiandi.