Sinar Mas chairman Muktar Widjaja
In today’s review of real estate news from around the region, Indonesia’s Sinar Mas snaps up Burberry’s London headquarters from Derwent London, Microsoft pledges $5.5 billion to expand Singapore’s cloud and AI infrastructure, and DayOne Data Centers commits $6.9 billion to make Malaysia its largest global base.
Indonesia’s Sinar Mas Buying Burberry London HQ From Derwent for $174M
Indonesian developer Sinar Mas has agreed to buy Horseferry House, the Westminster headquarters of fashion brand Burberry, from Derwent London for £131.8 million ($174.4 million). The 64,900 square foot (6,030 square metre) building is fully let to Burberry until 2043, with no break options and fixed rental uplifts in 2033 and 2038.
Derwent acquired the building for £34 million in 2005 before pre-letting to Burberry after a refurbishment. The deal forms part of the developer’s target to sell £1 billion of assets over three years, the company said. Read more>>
Microsoft Pledges $5.5B for Singapore Cloud and AI Infrastructure Through 2029
Microsoft will invest $5.5 billion in Singapore’s cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure from 2025 through 2029, the company announced at the Asia Tech x Inspire event. Vice chair and president Brad Smith said the funds will cover infrastructure development, operations, cybersecurity and governance.
Microsoft also unveiled its Elevate programmes for Singapore, offering free AI training to educators and nonprofit leaders, and granting more than 200,000 tertiary students free 12-month access to Microsoft 365 Premium with Copilot, the company said. Read more>>
Japan Metropolitan Fund Completes Aeon Mall Tsurumi Ryokuchi Disposal at $40M
Japan Metropolitan Fund Investment Corporation has completed the final disposition of its 25 percent co-ownership interest in Aeon Mall Tsurumi Ryokuchi in Osaka for JPY 6.4 billion ($40.2 million), concluding a two-part sale series first announced in August 2025.
The transaction generated an estimated gain of JPY 758 million for the August 2026 fiscal period, which the J-REIT plans to distribute to unitholders. Proceeds will replenish cash used to repay short-term borrowings incurred in connection with property acquisitions announced in August 2025. Read more>>
Japan Post Commits $1B to Ashmore Emerging Market Funds in New Partnership
Japan Post Insurance has partnered with London-based asset manager Ashmore Group, committing $1 billion to Ashmore’s emerging markets funds, in addition to assets already managed by the firm. The insurer will also seek to acquire up to a 2.9 percent stake through open-market purchases.
Ashmore said the deal would deepen collaboration across emerging market fixed income, impact debt and listed equities. President Kunio Tanigaki said emerging markets represent an important and growing asset class for the insurer. Read more>>
Bugis Junction Towers Put on Singapore Market at $532M
Bugis Junction Towers, a 15-storey Grade A office building above the Bugis MRT interchange in Singapore’s city centre, has been put on the market at S$685 million ($532.1 million). The property has 248,853 square feet (23,120 square metres) of net lettable area.
The offering comes as Singapore’s office market continues to attract strong interest, with office assets valued at more than S$5 billion transacting in the city-state so far this year. Read more>>
China New Home Prices Edge Up in March on Seasonal Demand Recovery
New home prices across 100 Chinese cities rose 0.05 percent in March from the previous month’s level, reversing a 0.04 percent February decline, according to the China Index Academy. Increased supplies of higher-quality projects in core cities drove the modest recovery, the research firm said.
Continued momentum in April will be critical to reinforcing market expectations, the firm cautioned. China’s property downturn, driven by government curbs on developer borrowing since 2020, has strained liquidity across the sector. Read more>>
DayOne Data Centers Commits $6.9B to Malaysia, Making It Firm’s Largest Hub
Singapore-headquartered DayOne Data Centers committed more than MYR 28 billion ($6.9 billion) to Malaysia by the end of 2026, making the country its largest global operational base. The commitment was announced at the inaugural Tech and AI Career Expo in Kuala Lumpur.
The expansion will create more than 5,000 supply chain jobs and 200 high-value roles in Kuala Lumpur, with more than 1,000 data centre engineers to be trained at a new hub in Johor, DayOne said. Read more>>
Frasers to Sell $172M Sydney Convenience Centre as Retail Buyers Circle
Frasers Property Australia has brought Ed.Square Town Centre, a convenience and dining asset in southwest Sydney’s Edmondson Park, to market at A$250 million ($172 million). The centre is anchored by a Coles supermarket adjacent to the Edmondson Park train and bus interchange.
CBRE is managing an expressions of interest campaign for the centre, which forms part of Frasers Property’s A$1.5 billion Ed.Square mixed-use development. Convenience-focused retail buyers are understood to be among those circling the asset. Read more>>
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