Ex-WeWorker was Paid $2M to Hush Up Sex and Drug Claims and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

Allegations of hedonism and sexual assault lead the way in Mingtiandi’s roundup of Asia real estate headlines today as a former employee of WeWork is said to have been paid $2 million to stay quiet about the drug and sex culture at the troubled co-working giant.

In other news around the region, a Singapore media kingpin has snapped up a portfolio of five aged-care properties in Japan for $48 million, while a Seoul-based asset manager has gained approval for the first-ever listing of a cross-border REIT in Korea. Elsewhere, a condo oversupply problem in a Southeast Asian city is being exacerbated by the COVID-19 crisis.

WeWork Employee Paid $2M to Hush Up Sex and Drugs Claims

WeWork paid off a female whistleblower with more that $2 million in cash to stay quiet after she threatened to expose an alleged culture of drug-taking, sleeping with colleagues and discrimination at the company, and claimed that she was a victim of a sex assault.

The woman filed a 50-page document outlining a catalog of allegations in 2018. Read more>>

SPH Buys 5 Japanese Aged Care Properties for JPY 5.3B

Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) is acquiring five aged care assets in Japan for JPY 5.3 billion ($48 million1) as it expands overseas in markets with fast-ageing populations.

Three of the properties are in Hokkaido, with another one each in Tokyo and Nara in the Osaka Metropolitan Region. The properties, with 365 beds in total, offer seniors independent living with community-based activities, transport and laundry, meals and care services. Read more>>

Korea’s First Cross-Border REIT Listing Gets Green Light

South Korean real estate investment firm JR Asset Management (JR AMC) said on 24 February that it had obtained government approval for the initial public offering of its real estate investment trust, which invests in Belgium’s second-tallest skyscraper.

The REIT, called JR Global, is hoping to carry out the nation’s first listing of a cross-border REIT. Read more>>

Singapore Has More Foreign REITs than Anywhere Else in the World

Singapore is becoming a hub for the property-management industry: It has more foreign REITs than anywhere else in the world, and the companies’ importance on the nation’s benchmark equity index is the highest it’s ever been.

Since the city-state saw the first share sale of a real estate investment trust in 2002, it has pocketed 41 IPOs of such firms – including seven foreign-currency-denominated ones. In comparison, Hong Kong, the world’s top initial public offering venue last year, has just had 11 since then, according to Bloomberg-compiled data. Read more>>

Frasers Commercial Trust Secures S$100m Sustainability-linked Loan

The trustee of Frasers Commercial Trust (FCOT) has taken out a S$100 million ($71 million) sustainability-linked loan to refinance existing borrowings.

The five-year term loan is based on the sustainability-linked loan principles issued by the Loan Market Association and the Asia Pacific Loan Market Association, FCOT’s manager announced on Monday night. Read more>>

Oxley Unit to Issue S$75m Notes with 6.5% Coupon

Oxley Holdings’ wholly owned subsidiary, Oxley MTN, has priced its new S$75 million ($54 million), three-year notes at 6.5 percent.

The notes will mature on Feb 28, 2023, the mainboard-listed property developer announced on Monday night. Read more>>

Bangkok’s Condo Oversupply Problem Worsened by Coronavirus

Bangkok’s condo market, once a favourite of Chinese investors, faces a bleak year as the novel coronavirus outbreak keeps buyers away.

Foreigners are set to account for as little as ten percent of purchases in 2020, down from 20 percent two years ago, consultancy Agency for Real Estate Affairs estimates. Read more>>

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