Elliott Investment Management founder and president Paul Singer
The undervalued assets of Japanese corporates lead today’s look at real estate headlines from around Asia as activist investor Elliott Management takes a stake in an Osaka power utility. Also making the news are the Hong Kong loan woes of a top Singapore bank and one of the UK’s largest asset managers.
Elliott Takes Aim at Japanese Assets With Stake in Power Utility
Elliott Management has become a top three shareholder of Kansai Electric Power, Japan’s second-largest utility and a major nuclear power operator, in a sign that activist investors in the country feel emboldened to take positions in sectors considered sensitive.
The New York-based activist fund now owns between 4 and 5 percent of the company, according to people familiar with the stake. That would make Elliott a top three shareholder, based on share data from Kansai Electric. Read more>>
UOB Rolls Over $1.3B Loan for Shimao Hong Kong Project
A HK$10 billion ($1.3 billion) loan tied to a luxury Hong Kong apartment complex has turned into a months-long saga, underscoring the widespread impact of the city’s prolonged property slump.
United Overseas Bank is extending the maturity of the loan, backed by the Beacon Peak complex near the Kowloon Tong area, after attempts to offload the facility to private credit investors fell through, according to people familiar with the matter. The project, developed by defaulted Chinese builder Shimao Group, only began selling in January, with just 17 of 332 units sold in its first phase of development as of 2 September, according to sale records. Read more>>
Schroders Fails to Repay Loan on Kowloon Commercial Podium
The real estate arm of Schroders may be close to having another Hong Kong asset seized by creditors after failing to repay a loan on a Kowloon commercial podium.
The local unit of China’s Bank of Communications is mulling its options for the loan backed by the commercial portion of the Harbourfront Landmark complex in the Hung Hom area, according to an account by Bloomberg. Read more>>
Blackstone Joins $525M Investment in Dubai Property Portal
Permira and Blackstone have invested $525 million in Dubai-based Property Finder, in a bet that the city’s real estate market can move beyond its boom-and-bust reputation.
The private capital firms acquired a minority stake in the property classifieds website, according to a statement on Tuesday. General Atlantic, which invested in Property Finder in 2018, sold part of its holding in the transaction. The companies did not disclose the valuation. Read more>>
Daiwa House-Trammell Crow JV Completes Houston Industrial Park
Trammell Crow and joint venture partner Daiwa House Texas delivered Blue Ridge Commerce Center, a five-building industrial park in Houston.
Set on 92 acres (37 hectares), the master-planned development includes more than 1.3 million square feet (120,774 square metres) of industrial space. The project broke ground in August 2024 and features five industrial buildings available for lease or sale from 153,000 to 431,000 square feet. Read more>>
China Completes Transfer of Bad Asset Managers to Sovereign Fund
Nearly seven months after the official announcement, China’s Ministry of Finance has completed the ownership transfer of the country’s three biggest state-owned bad debt managers to a subsidiary of sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corporation.
The ministry has transferred its entire 58 percent stake in China Cinda Asset Management to Central Huijin Investment, the Beijing-based asset management company announced on 4 September. Read more>>
KKR, Blackstone Help India Become Global Buyout Hub
Global asset managers from KKR to Blackstone are ramping up investments in India and elevating locally based executives to key regional roles, underscoring the nation’s rise in Asia’s private equity landscape.
Seven global funds now have their Asia private equity heads or co-heads based in Mumbai, including Blackstone’s Amit Dixit and KKR’s Gaurav Trehan. That’s a sharp shift from just five years ago when none of the investment managers had Asia roles located in India. Read more>>
Tokyo Megadeals Lead Japan Real Estate Investment to Record High
Japanese real estate investment exceeded JPY 3 trillion ($20.4 billion) for the first time ever in a first half, driven by brisk sales of Tokyo office space, according to JLL. Property investment totalled JPY 3.19 trillion in the January-June period, up 22 percent from a year earlier.
This marks the first time that investment topped JPY 3 trillion since comparable data became available in 2007. Offices accounted for 53 percent of the investment. Read more>>
Tune in again soon for more real estate news and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on X, or bookmark Mingtiandi’s LinkedIn page for headlines as they happen.
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