Confusion reigns over which Chinese property tycoon owns 2-8a Rutland Gate
Leading off today’s roundup of regional news headlines is China Evergrande founder Xu Jiayin, aka Hui Ka Yan, who reportedly has been unmasked as the ultimate owner of London’s most expensive house — a Knightsbridge mansion previously linked solely to CC Land boss Cheung Chung Kiu.
London’s Most Expensive Home ‘Owned by Evergrande Founder’
London’s most expensive house is owned by the head of embattled Chinese property group Evergrande, according to people familiar with the secretive £210 million (now $235.3 million) sale that was struck just before COVID-19 hit the UK.
The 45-room mansion overlooking Hyde Park was sold by the estate of the former Saudi Arabian crown prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz for its record-breaking price in January 2020. Read more>>
Google to Open First Japan Data Centre to Accelerate Asia Push
Alphabet’s Google will open its first data centre in Japan next year as part of increasing investment in the world’s third-biggest economy.
The new facility, based in Chiba’s Inzai City, will accelerate the operation of Google tools and services and support economic activity and jobs, chief executive Sundar Pichai said in a blog post on Friday. It is part of a broader $730 million investment in local infrastructure by the US company that began last year and will extend until 2024. Google is also leading the construction of a new subsea cable linking Japan and Canada, called Topaz. Read more>>
Malaysia’s EPF in Partnership With ALP to Build Logistics Hub in Klang
Malaysia’s Employees Provident Fund and Taiwan’s Ally Logistic Property have entered into a shareholder agreement to develop a 100 percent pre-leased logistics hub in Klang.
The EPF will invest in up to a 70 percent stake in the joint venture company, with the remaining 30 percent held by ALP. Read more>>
Chinese Cities Offer Huge ‘Group Buying’ Discounts on Unsold Properties
Cities across China are resorting to pressuring groups of state-sector workers to buy up unsold housing stock at discounts of up to 30 percent, as local governments struggle to jump-start flatlining property markets, The Paper reported Thursday.
China’s real estate sector is mired in its worst debt crisis in decades, with developers across the country defaulting on payments and halting construction on new projects. The turbulence has triggered a wider loss of market confidence: land and property sales have fallen by double-digit levels in 2022. Read more>>
Mahindra Lifespace, Actis Form JV to Build Industrial, Logistics Real Estate
MahindraLifespace Developers has entered into an agreement with global investor Actis to establish a joint venture platform for developing industrial and logistics real estate facilities across India.
Up to 100 acres (40.5 hectares) of land with ready infrastructure in the two Mahindra World Cities, offering a built-up potential of over 2 million square feet (185,806 square metres), has been earmarked as seed sites to be acquired and developed by the platform over time, subject to requisite approvals. Read more>>
China Builder CIFI Falls Deeper Into Distress Despite State Help
A Chinese developer among a rapidly dwindling group still able to access financing has found that it’s no panacea amid a broader property debt crisis which policymakers are increasingly trying to defuse.
CIFI Holdings Group, China’s 15th-largest developer by contracted sales this year, is among a select group of real estate firms that recently received state guarantees on local debt sales. Just weeks after that, though, its problems are rapidly multiplying, underscoring the limits to official steps to support the real estate industry. Read more>>
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani to Open Family Office in Singapore
Asia’s second-wealthiest man, Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani, is setting up a family office in Singapore, according to people familiar with the move.
The Mumbai-based billionaire has picked a manager to hire staff for the new entity and get it running, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private. The Ambanis have also chosen real estate, one of the people said. Read more>>
WeWork India Expands in Two Bengaluru Buildings
Co-working major WeWork India on Thursday said it has taken on a lease of 362,000 square feet (33,631 square metres) of office space in Bengaluru as part of its expansion plan amid rising demand for flexible workspace.
In 2017, WeWork Global partnered with Bengaluru-based Embassy Group to enter the Indian market. WeWork India currently has over 5 million square feet across 40 locations in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune and Hyderabad. Read more>>
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