Gaw, Alyssa, Savills and Kio to Lead Mingtiandi APAC Residential Forum This Month

Trades of income-earning residential assets in Asia Pacific jumped 20 percent last year, making the living sector the fastest growing asset class in the region, according to MSCI and attracting more capital to a sector that is quickly gaining scale from Melbourne to Seoul.

To find out more about how the expansion of Asia Pacific’s rental housing markets is creating opportunities for investors in 2026, the Mingtiandi APAC Residential Forum will bring together experts from some of the region’s most active investors and advisors for a series of online discussions, brought to you by Yardi.

With Japan and Australia ranking as the largest rental residential markets in Asia Pacific, the forum on Mingtiandi’s MTD TV video platform will focus on strategies for investing in the two countries’ living sectors through separate panel discussions on Thursday, 19 March and Tuesday 24 March, at 10:00 AM Hong Kong time.

Both panel discussions will be streamed live, with this month’s event series marking the sixth annual edition of the Mingtiandi APAC Residential Forum. Viewing the forum is free of charge and you may register at the link above.

Australia Up First

The 19 March panel will focus on Australia’s build-to-rent market, with senior executives from sustainable build to rent specialist Model, Warburg Pincus-backed Kio and market intelligence provider MSCI joining the one-hour programme.

Representing Model in the discussion will be Rory Hunter, who founded the Melbourne-based company in 2023 and now has secured development approval for its first two projects, including a development in the city’s Abbotsford area which is set to be Melbourne’s tallest residential timber tower.

Joining the talk from Kio will be founder and managing director Sam Bisla, with the Warburg Pincus-backed developer, operator and investment manager currently building a 286-unit flagship project in South Brisbane. 

Benjamin Martin-Henry, head of private assets research for the Pacific region at MSCI will be representing the index maker in the panel, and providing data-driven insights on the trends shaping the rapidly growing sector. 

Covering Japan

The Japan session on 24 March will bring together experts from Alyssa Partners, Gaw Capital Partners, Savills and Samurai Capital, to bring viewers the latest developments from Asia Pacific’s largest rental residential market. 

With his company having recently added Mitsui & Co to its growing list of partners, Alyssa managing partner and CEO Chedli Boujellabia will be joining the panel to share insights on the Tokyo-based shop sources properties from developers, boosts revenues and grows its team in an increasingly competitive market.

With her team having invested in offices, data centres, retail and logistics in Japan in addition to mult-family, Isabella Lo will be joining the programme to share from her experience heading Gaw Capital’s business in Japan, including expanding its portfolio of rental housing assets. 

After having partnered with global players Manulife Investment Management, Mubadala Investment Company and Proprium Partners for rental residential projects in Japan, including the company’s Haun co-living platform, Ken Aoyama will join the Japan panel to provide insights from his role as president and CEO of the company. 

From Savills, senior director Emily Fell will be speaking from her experience advising on living sector transactions for more than 15 years across Asia Pacific and Europe.

Singapore Forum on Way in May

Following the conclusion of the Mingtiandi APAC Residential Forum later this month, the Mingtiandi team will travel to Singapore for the company’s fifth annual conference in the city on 12 May.

The full-day event at the Conrad Singapore Marina Bay hotel will include interviews with Warburg Pincus managing director and co-head of real estate Ellen Ng; Hongkong Land chief executive officer Michael Smith, and GLP China chief executive officer Angela Zhao.

Other speakers at the event include top executives from Hilton Hotels, AB Capital Investment, CBRE, Savills, Centurion Accommodation REIT, Dash Living and more. 

Over 300 senior executives are expected to join the event, with more information (and tickets) available here.