Property group HongKong Land will stop investing in the build-to-sell segment of Asia’s property market to focus on developing “ultra-premium integrated commercial properties” in Asia’s gateway cities.
Under its new strategy, HongKong Land said it would focus on fund management with particular emphasis on establishing real estate investment trusts to drive sustainable, long-term growth.
HongKong Land intends to recycle up to US$10bn (€9.2bn) in capital by 2035 and grow assets under management from US$40bn today to up to US$100bn by 2035. It aims to double returns to investors over that time.
Michael Smith, who took over the role of CEO of HongKong Land in April, said the firm would turn its focus from building and selling apartments in what has been a tough market in Hong Kong across Asia, to develop, own and manage projects in Asian gateway cities to tap into “flight to quality” trends globally.
HongKong plans to leverage its portfolio of established flagship prime mixed-use projects in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Singapore, and will be further investing in its existing flagship prime mixed-use assets in Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai.
These assets include some 450,000sqm of prime property such as LANDMARK, the luxury shopping destination of Hong Kong Central currently undergoing a three-year, US$1bn expansion and upgrade.
HongKong Land owns prestigious office space in Singapore mainly held through joint ventures and five retail centres on the Chinese mainland, including a luxury retail centre at Wangfujing in Beijing.
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