A board change at Singapore’s ESR-Logos REIT leads this week’s set of personnel moves from Asia’s property industry, with a major Indian commercial developer also naming new leadership. Other additions to the list come from defaulting developer Ronshine China and Singapore-listed GuocoLand.
The manager of ESR-Logos REIT announced on 30 August that it has appointed Stuart Gibson as a non-executive director of the Singapore-listed property trust. Gibson, a co-CEO and co-founder of ESR Group took on his board role from that same day, replacing ESR chairman Jeffrey Perlman, who in July was promoted to president of Warburg Pincus and is relocating to New York from ESR-Logos REIT’s home base of Singapore.
Guy Fulton has left his role as head of Greater China real estate with the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) after more than 14 years with Canada’s largest public retirement fund manager. Messages to Fulton’s email address at CPPIB received an automated response that the account is no longer active. During the past year many North American pension fund managers have been under pressure to limit their investments in China, with some publicly announcing pauses in their activity on the mainland.
Mumbai-based developer and investor IndiaBulls Real Estate announced late last month that it has promoted Atul Chandra to chief operating office from 28 August. A chartered accountant, Chandra had joined IndiaBulls in April 2021 as a senior vice president from Samsara Finance, where he had served more than seven years as chief financial officer. Chandra also has previous experience with Capri Global and ICICI Bank in Mumbai.
Ronshine China said on 31 August that Zhang Lixin resigned as chief financial officer and executive director of the company from that same day. Ronshine, which in the same announcement acknowledged material uncertainty regarding its ability to survive financially, said that Zhang, who had held the role since 2018, was leaving the company to devote more time to his personal endeavours.
GuocoLand said on 31 August that Sharon Wee Hsu Oon was appointed as an independent, non-executive director of the Singapore-listed developer from 1 September. Now 47, Wee is a partner at law firm Allen & Gledhill who specialises in mergers and acquisitions as well as capital markets. The appointment is Wee’s first experience as a director with a Singapore-listed company, and she has been with Allen & Gledhill since 2006.
The manager of Keppel DC REIT said on 31 August that it has appointed Chua Soon Ghee (pictured), a partner with management consulting firm Kearney as an independent, non-executive director on its board. In the same announcement, the Singapore-listed REIT said that it was also appointing former Temasek International managing director Andrew Tan to an independent, non-executive seat on its board.
JLL said on 1 September that it has appointed Robert Lay as senior director for debt advisory with its Asia Pacific capital markets team. Based in Hong Kong, Lay joins the property consultancy from the New Zealand branch of Bank of China and will look after debt advisory for JLL’s capital markets team for Greater China, according to a press release. Lay served more than four years with Bank of China in Auckland, where he had served most recently as acting general manager, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Starr Insurance said on 29 August that it had named Sean Chen as chief executive officers of Starr International Insurance (Singapore) Pte Ltd, the firm’s business in the Southeast Asian city-state. A 14-year Starr veteran, Chen had served most recently as the regional manager for the company’s property, energy and construction business for Korea, Taiwan and Japan. He also previously served as a senior property underwriter in Starr’s Hong Kong office.
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.
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