Proprium Capital's Willem de Geus Named ANREV Chair

Proprium Capital’s Willem de Geus was named ANREV chair last week

One of Asia’s largest industry associations is going Dutch, as ANREV has named a pair of senior executives hailing from the Netherlands to lead the non-profit group.

The Asian Association for Investors in Non-Listed Real Estate Vehicles, as ANREV is written in its full form, announced on 18 September that it had appointed Proprium Capital founder and partner Willem de Geus as its new chairman, with Bouwinvest Real Estate Investment Management’s Stephen Tross being named deputy chairman.

The pair of Dutch executives took the helm of the real estate fund management organisation that same day, with de Geus vowing to continue the group’s mission of promoting development of the industry across Asia Pacific.

Ex-Morgan Stanley Exec Vows to Boost Best Practices

“I am delighted to take up the role as Chairman of ANREV,” de Geus said in a statement. “Looking ahead, amid the continued growth and maturity of the Asia Pacific real estate market, ANREV will be focused on its mission to improve transparency, professionalism and best practice across the industry in Asia Pacific.”

Stephen Tross of Bouwinvest

The former Morgan Stanley executive said that, under his leadership, ANREV will focus on training and development for its members as well as representing their interests with regulators in the region’s biggest fund management hubs.

The Singapore-based executive, who takes over the chairman role from Chelsfield Asia’s Nicholas Loup, has been part of ANREV’s leadership for over a decade and played a central role in establishing the group’s alliance with INREV – its European sister organisation – in 2009. Loup stepped down earlier this month after leading ANREV as chairman for 12 years during which time he oversaw the group’s expansion from 27 corporate members in 2009 to more than 200 members this year.

A graduate of the University of Nijmegen in the Netherlands, de Geus first came to Asia in 2008 with Morgan Stanley Real Estate before setting up Proprium as a spin-off from the US finance giant in 2013. With offices in the US, UK and Europe, in addition to bases in Hong Kong, Mumbai and Sydney in the APAC region, Proprium manages assets of approximately $2 billion, according to its website.

Continental Contingent on the Rise at ANREV

Tross, who has been a member of ANREV’s management board since 2013, steps into the deputy chairman role some 10 years after joining Bouwinvest, which has become increasing active in Asia during recent years.

In April of this year the Amsterdam-based real estate fund manager teamed up with Canada’s Ivanhoe Cambridge to back a new $800 million China joint venture with logistics specialist Logos Property. That deal came just three months after it joined up with Nuveen to buy $224 million in Tokyo apartments.

Tross, who is based in the Netherlands, currently serves as Bouwinvest’s chief investment officer for international investments. ANREV’s day to day activities are overseen by the group’s chief executive, Jeremy Stewardson, who returned to Hong Kong at the start of this year after previously serving as ANREV’s European regional representative.