Keppel Said Selling Chennai Office Building for $311M and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

Indian offices lead today’s look at real estate headlines from around the region, with Keppel said to have found a buyer for a Chennai asset. BlackRock also makes the news with an MOU with Korea’s president and Blackstone is reported to have sold the Waldorf Astoria to a Chinese investor for double its value before the mainland insurance entrepreneur was shipped off to prison.

Singapore’s Keppel Said Selling Chennai Office Building to Nuvama for $311M

Singapore-based Keppel is set to divest its One Paramount office building in Chennai to a fund managed by Nuvama Asset Management and Cushman & Wakefield for INR 27.5 billion ($311 million), according to an account in the local press citing people familiar with the matter.

The Chennai acquisition comes after Prime Offices Fund, a 50:50 venture of Nuvama Asset Management and Cushman & Wakefield India, earlier purchased Prius Platinum in Delhi for INR 7.5 billion and picked up an asset in Saket for INR 7.6 billion. Read more>>

BlackRock, GIP Sign MOU With Korean Govt for Hyperscale Data Centre Hub

US investment firm BlackRock and the South Korean government will work together to set up a hyperscale data centre hub in Asia’s fourth-largest economy, with the aim of completing the project in a decade, the presidential office said.

The infrastructure needed to run AI applications will not only meet domestic demand but also accommodate demand across Asia Pacific regions that could see explosive growth in the next few years, according to a memorandum of understanding signed Monday between Science Minister Bae Kyung-hoon and BlackRock chairman Larry Fink. Read more>>

Chinese Investors Spent $8B on Waldorf Astoria Purchase, Renovation

Over breakfast at Manhattan’s Peninsula Hotel 11 years ago this month, the nattily dressed Chinese businessman got straight to the point. He wanted to buy the legendary Waldorf Astoria hotel.

The two American real estate executives at the table excused themselves to call the CEO of Hilton, which owned the 1,400-room slice of New York history. Though brokers had advised the two executives that the property was worth a little more than $1 billion, the three men decided to shoot for the moon. The Americans returned to the table and told Wu Xiaohui he could have it for $2 billion. They were floored when he countered at $1.9 billion. By the end of the day, they had a handshake deal at $1.95 billion. Read more>>

Singapore’s STT GDC Buys Mumbai Data Centre Site From Lodha

Lodha Developers has finalised the sale of over 24 acres (9.7 hectares) of land in Mumbai’s Palava region to Singapore-based STT Global Data Centres for an estimated INR 5 billion ($56 million), sources disclosed. The transaction was officially registered, signalling a significant move in data centre expansion.

The deal involves the transfer of 1.74 acres from Lodha Developers and 22.6 acres from its subsidiary Palava Induslogic 4. It is part of a broader initiative to establish a green integrated data centre park, with a planned total investment of INR 300 billion, dedicated to enhancing the region’s technological infrastructure. Read more>>

Blackstone-Sponsored India REIT to Raise $181M Through Onshore Bond Sale

Knowledge Realty Trust, India’s largest REIT, plans to raise as much as INR 16 billion ($181 million) in the onshore market through its first-ever bond sale, according to people familiar with the matter.

The REIT, backed by Blackstone and India’s Sattva Developers, plans to issue a three-year note, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private information. The bond will carry a coupon of 7.2 percent, payable quarterly, and Barclays is arranging the issuance, they said. Read more>>

Former New World CEO Adrian Cheng Seeks ‘Transformative Paradigm’ Opportunities

Adrian Cheng, former chief executive of Hong Kong’s New World Development, this week announced the launch of Almad Group, an investment firm pursuing “opportunities across nine transformative paradigms”.

The group’s portfolio is described as focusing on mainland China, ASEAN and the Middle East, among other geographies, with the scope of investment narrowed down to culture, entertainment, sports, media, healthcare, commercial management and cultural tourism, as well as digital and virtual assets. In a nod to Cheng’s signature brand within New World, the announcement said Almad is “globalising K11 by AC cultural ecosystem”. Read more>>

Chinese Regulator Asks Hong Kong Brokerages to Halt Real World Asset Tokenisations

China’s securities watchdog has advised some local brokerages to pause their real-world asset tokenisation business in Hong Kong, said two sources, signalling Beijing’s concerns of a euphoric drive towards a booming digital assets market offshore.

The RWA tokenisation process usually converts traditional assets such as stocks, bonds, funds and even real estate into digital tokens traded on a blockchain. A raft of Chinese firms, including brokerages, have launched RWAs in Hong Kong over the past few months. Read more>>

Country Garden Seeks to Restructure $2B in Onshore Bonds

Chinese developer Country Garden Holdings is seeking to restructure nine publicly traded bonds worth RMB 13.9 billion ($2 billion), proposing to extend repayments over a decade through 2035, according to a media report.

The bonds, due between 2023 and next year, would be repaid in nine semi-annual instalments from 2 September 2031 to 2 September 2035, media outlet The Paper reported recently, citing the Foshan-based company’s restructuring plan. Read more>>

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