Digital Core REIT chairman Serene Nah (Image: Digital Realty)
Singapore-listed Digital Core REIT expands its data centre footprint in Osaka, with that deal leading today’s headline roundup. Also in the news, tycoon Ong Beng Seng delays his guilty plea over health concerns and South Korea’s IGIS outbids KKR for a Seoul office tower.
Digital Core REIT Buys Stake in Osaka Data Centre for $88M
Digital Core REIT has acquired a 20 percent interest in an Osaka data centre for JPY 13.2 billion ($88 million), the Singapore-listed trust’s manager said Wednesday.
The total acquisition cost comprised a purchase consideration of JPY 13 billion plus fees. It comes in addition to a 20 percent stake the trust already holds in a neighbouring facility on the same data centre campus. Read more>>
Singapore’s Ong Beng Seng Delays Guilty Plea on Health Claim
Billionaire Ong Beng Seng will plead guilty at a later date than originally expected in a case related to a former Singapore government minister who was jailed for obtaining gifts from the property tycoon.
“Mr Ong has requested for more time to obtain more detailed reports from his doctors on his medical condition, and the ongoing monitoring and treatment required,” a spokesperson for Ong said in a statement Wednesday. Prosecutors didn’t object to the delay, court documents show. Read more>>
IGIS Said to Outbid KKR for Seoul’s SI Tower
KB Asset Management has selected IGIS Asset Management as the preferred bidder for the SI Tower after the local investment titan offered KRW 800 billion ($550 million) for the office asset, according to local news reports.
Located on Teheran-ro in the core of Seoul’s Gangnam district, the 24-storey building is said to have drawn bids from KKR among other local and international investors, with the tower’s occupiers including Hyundai Mobis, Nokia and San Ten Pharmaceutical Korea. Read more>>
US Investment Manager Madison International Realty Opens Korea Office
Madison International Realty has further expanded its business in Asia with the appointment of Jun Park as head of South Korea and the opening of its first office in the country. Located in central Seoul, the office will be Madison’s eighth globally and second in Asia, following the opening of the firm’s Singapore office last April.
Park will join Madison to lead the advancement of the firm’s interactions with investors in South Korea from the new office in Seoul, which is set to open in the second quarter. As part of the senior leadership team, Park will work closely with Madison’s president and founder, Ron Dickerman, its global co-heads of equity capital markets Evan Abrams and Michael Siefert, as well as its head of Asia, Yichao Mark, to progress the firm’s long-term strategy for growth in the region. Read more>>
Malaysian Banking Scion Identified as Buyer of $70M Singapore Bungalow
A Singapore luxury mansion has been purchased at a record price per square foot by a scion of the family that backs one of Malaysia’s largest banks.
The S$93.9 million ($70.1 million) purchase of a so-called good-class bungalow under construction in the city-state’s Tanglin Hill area was completed last month, according to property records seen by Bloomberg. It was bought by Diona Teh Li Shian, a daughter of the late tycoon Teh Hong Piow, who founded Public Bank. Read more>>
Henderson Heirs Take Control of Late Father’s Stake in Developer
The two sons of the late Hong Kong billionaire Lee Shau-Kee now control their father’s $10 billion stake in property firm Henderson Land Development, according to new filings.
Peter Lee, 61, and Martin Lee, 53, who have been co-chairmen of the company since 2019, appear as equal controllers of the shares through three different vehicles, according to filings with the Hong Kong stock exchange. The documents don’t specify whether they’re the sole beneficiaries of the trust that holds their father’s stake. Read more>>
Hong Kong Consumers Lose Interest in Shenzhen Shopping Sprees
Hong Kong’s downtrodden retail sector could be headed for a turning point in coming months, as city residents show less enthusiasm for taking their money across the border for bargains in Shenzhen, according to UBS and JLL.
The city’s retail sales were likely to be flat this year, the Swiss bank said Monday, an upgrade from its previous forecast of a decline as big as 5 percent. Hong Kong recorded its 11th straight month of falling retail sales in January, with a 3.2 percent year-on-year drop, according to the latest official data, narrowing a 9.6 percent plunge in December. Read more>>
Elliott’s Sumitomo Investment Seen Sparking Interest in Japanese Property Stocks
Shares of Japanese developers forged ahead on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Tuesday, inspired by Elliott Investment Management’s move to invest in Sumitomo Realty & Development, a highly undervalued real estate stock in Japan.
Shares of Mitsubishi Estate closed up more than 4 percent, while those of Mitsui Fudosan gained more than 1 percent. Sumitomo Realty moved sideways after a 10.5 percent surge on Monday. Elliott’s investment in Sumitomo Realty was first reported by Bloomberg on Monday. Read more>>
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