Asia Real Estate People in the News 2021-10-11

Senior fund managers lead Mingtiandi’s collection of real estate personnel changes this week with a top-level change at Macquarie Group in Hong Kong, a US logistics specialist naming a leader for its Asia Pacific expansion and Invesco promoting a veteran in its Hong Kong office.

Angel Li has joined Macquarie Group in Hong Kong as head of Asia Real Estate, according to a LinkedIn update. Li took on her new role, which comes with a managing director title, during September after 15 years with CLSA Real Estate, where she was also a managing director and member of the investment committee for the investment bank’s private equity real estate fund management business.

Phoenix Property Investors has hired CICC Capital veteran Bokang Cheng as director of China investments, based in Shanghai, according to an announcement by the company. Cheng, who managed multiple opportunistic real estate funds during his six years at CICC Capital, will be joining a China team led by former PAG executive Michael Susanto, who joined the Hong Kong-based fund management house earlier this year.

Bastian Van Halder has signed up to lead the Asia Pacific expansion of US logistics real estate investment firm Realterm, which announced the establishment of a Singapore office last week. Now Realterm’s managing director for Asia, Van Halder previously spent more than eight years with JLL in Singapore, where he served most recently as corporate finance director for Asia Pacific. The graduate of the UK’s Heriot-Watt University also has previous experience with Standard Life and PriceWaterhouseCoopers.

Catherine Chen has been promoted to senior director at Invesco Asia Pacific, after four years with the asset management firm’s office in Hong Kong, where she joined as a director in March 2017. Before signing up with the US firm, the graduate of the University of Hong Kong spent more than seven years with LaSalle Investment Management, as well as serving stints with Aberdeen Asset Management, Goodman and Capmark.

Dentons has brought on board former Paul Hastings partner David Blumenfeld as head of its Asia Pacific real estate practice, according to a recent announcement by the law firm. During his time leading the real estate practice for Paul Hastings in the region, Blumenfeld represented China Life on its acquisition of 1285 Avenue of the Americas in Manhattan, as well as on its participation in GLP investments which acquired $4.5 billion in US logistics assets.

Jerome Wright has switched sides in Singapore where he joined the capital markets team at JLL this month after nearly five years with Colliers International in the city. Wright, who had served with JLL’s office leasing team in Singapore from 2006 to 2017, returns to his former employer as a senior director, which was the same title that he held with the capital markets team at Colliers for nearly the past two years, after joining the company as a director in 2017.

David Mui has taken a step up to assistant vice president with mainland developer China Vanke, after more than three years in the company’s Hong Kong office. Focusing on sales of the Shenzhen-based giant’s residential projects in the city, the University of Hong Kong graduate also has previous experience in sales and marketing with Henderson Land Development as well has having served as a development surveyor with Savills in the city.

Samantha Yu has been promoted to head of international project marketing for mainland China at Knight Frank, taking a step up just six months after being named a director with the team. Based in Shanghai, Yu has now been helping Knight Frank to market overseas homes for just over two years, after joining the firm from Colliers International in 2019, where she had worked her way up to associate director during her five years with the agency.

If you know of other Asia real estate professionals changing their jobs, getting promoted or just doing something exciting, please contact us here at Mingtiandi.