Keppel DC REIT Installs New CEO After Distributions Grew 20% in 2020

The board of Singapore’s top-performing REIT on Monday announced the formal appointment of Anthea Lee as chief executive, effective immediately, after receiving the required regulatory approval.

Lee assumes the top job at Keppel DC REIT after serving as deputy CEO and head of investment. She replaces Chua Hsien Yang, who left the data centre trust to become Keppel Corporation’s director of group M&A.

Among SGX-listed real estate investment trusts, Keppel DC REIT’s units saw the biggest return in 2020 with a 35 percent gain.

“Anthea has more than 14 years of experience in REIT management,” Christina Tan, chairman of the REIT’s manager, said last November when the appointment was announced. “She has been deputy CEO of Keppel DC REIT Management since 2018 and has been identified and groomed as part of our succession planning. The board looks forward to working with Anthea and the management team to continue refining and executing Keppel DC REIT’s strategy to create value for all unitholders.”

Execs on the Rise

Twenty-year real estate veteran Lee previously held the post of vice president of investment at Keppel REIT Management with a focus on regional investments and divestments.

A degree holder from both the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University, Lee spent 10 years with state industrial developer JTC Corporation and developer Ascendas (now part of CapitaLand) before joining Keppel in 2006.

Her promotion was part of a management refresh announced in November that included the advancement of Keppel Land chief operating officer Louis Lim to chief executive of the developer. Lim’s appointment was also scheduled to take effect on Monday.

Lim is among Keppel’s “next generation leadership” that collaborated on formulating the company’s sustainability-driven Vision 2030 plan, which provides a blueprint for the group to integrate its businesses into a new focus on key sectors like energy, urban development, connectivity and asset management.

In its unaudited results released last month, Keppel DC REIT reported 20.5 percent year-on-year growth in distribution per unit to 9.170 Singapore cents ($0.07) for FY 2020. Since the trust’s 2014 listing, unitholders saw a 311.6 percent return as of 31 December 2020.