Many of South Dakota’s residents will now have their pensions invested in Blackstone’s latest Asia fund
At the top of today’s headlines, the state famous for the Black Hills has turned to Blackstone to invest $300 million of its pensions in Asian property assets. Also in the news, Wanda is asking for six months time to find a way to repay $1.7 billion in offshore loans, and Shanghai is setting aside land to build 20,000 rental homes. All these stories and more await you below.
Blackstone Wins $300M Commitment From South Dakota
South Dakota Investment Council has approved a $300m (€254m) commitment to the Blackstone Real Estate Partners Asia II fund. A number of institutional investors, overseen by the investment council, are providing the capital, according to a board meeting document.
The South Dakota Retirement System is committing $270m, the Education Enhancement Trust $13m, the Dakota Cement Trust and School & Public Lands $7m, and the Healthcare Trust $3m. Read more>>
Wanda Tries to Renegotiate $1.7B in Offshore Loans
Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties is proposing to repay US$1.7325bn of offshore loans within six months after ratings downgrades triggered mandatory repayments, according to sources.
The property-to-cinema conglomerate told banks earlier this month that its commercial property unit planned to repay four loans in full by May, resisting some lenders’ calls for immediate repayment. Read more>>
Shanghai Earmarks Land for 20,000 Rental Homes
Shanghai’s government is offering six more parcels of land for rental home development, increasing the pace of land supply in a bid to rein in skyrocketing property prices.
The six plots put up by the municipal government for sale this week total 166,300 square metres with a combined starting bid price of 1.94 billion yuan (US$294 million). This brings the total land supply for residential leasing development since July 24, when the first such land was offered, to 1.26 million square metres or 28.9 per cent of the 4.36 million square metres the city has supplied so far this year. Read more>>
Pan Pacific Opens 333-Room Yangon Hotel
Wee Wei Ling, executive director of Pan Pacific Hotel Group, isn’t at all worried about the glut in hotel rooms in Yangon. “There is definitely an oversupply. In fact, tourism has been declining recently. But we are long-term investors in Myanmar. We see the potential of this country and we would like to grow with it. That is why we are here,” she said.
Owned by Singapore-listed property conglomerate UOL Group, the company opened Pan Pacific Yangon last month, amid an unfolding humanitarian crisis in northern Rakhine, which has deterred some investors and tourists from entering Myanmar. Read more>>
Keppel Land Enters JV to Build Two Bangkok Condo Projects
Keppel Land Limited, the property arm of Keppel Corporation, has entered into a joint venture with Thai property developer KPN LAND Co Ltd to develop two premium condominium projects in Bangkok’s CBD.
It said on Thursday that it has, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, entered into a conditional joint venture agreement with KPN LAND Co Ltd to acquire two prime sites from KPN LAND and other existing landowners for 2.2 billion baht (S$90 million). Read more>>
CapitaLand Links Up With Union Pay to Boost Mainland Malls
CapitaLand is paving the way to create more seamless experiences for its customers through a new strategic alliance with China UnionPay. The alliance seeks to tap the connected lifestyle and digital literacy of CapitaLand’s China customers by enhancing the Group’s CapitaStar programme with cashless payment capabilities.
The alliance was forged in Beijing, China last week at the ‘IE Singapore – CapitaLand Tech & Innovation Summit’, officiated by Guest of Honour Mr Heng Swee Keat, Minister for Finance, Republic of Singapore and co-chair of the Committee on the Future Economy. Read more>>
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