Latest news with #Reit
Business Times
15-06-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Perennial explores Reit listings in China with ‘aggressive' expansion in medical, eldercare sectors
[SINGAPORE] Property player Perennial Holdings is exploring real estate investment trust (Reit) listings in China – one for commercial properties and another for healthcare assets, the company's chief executive, Pua Seck Guan, told The Business Times. The Reits, which could be listed in Shanghai or Shenzhen, would ride on booming demand from yield-hungry investors on the mainland. 'The Chinese love this class of assets. If you go and do a check today, the Chinese Reit yield is below 5 per cent; in Singapore, it's more than 7 per cent,' said Pua in an interview at the company's one-north office. With deposit rates under 1 per cent, Chinese investors are hunting for dividends. 'So if you give them 4 to 5 per cent (in yield), they will be very happy,' the CEO said, adding that there is demand from both retail and institutional investors. Founded in 2009, Perennial has five healthcare-centric mega developments in China – in Chengdu, Kunming, Xi'an, Chongqing and Tianjin – and a commercial-focused one in Hangzhou, among other assets. It also operates China's first fully foreign-owned hospital in Tianjin, has another coming up in Guangzhou, and is invested in major eldercare company Renshoutang. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Reits were introduced in China in 2021, and demand has been 'stratospheric', according to a Bloomberg report in February. There were 28 Reits listed in China last year – nearly trebling from the number in 2023 – which raised a record 64 billion yuan (S$11.4 billion). Perennial may also consider listing its healthcare business in Hong Kong or mainland China, said Pua. The company, which traded on the Singapore Exchange from 2014 to 2020, has no plans to pursue listings here. Pua cited liquidity and valuations as concerns, along with the fact that the majority of Perennial's business is now in China. The company began its foray into China healthcare a decade ago with the opening of a medical hub in Chengdu. It now owns and operates more than 25,000 beds in medical and eldercare facilities in Singapore and China. In Singapore, Perennial, together with Far East Organization, is redeveloping Golden Mile Complex. There will be medical suites, offices, retail spaces and a residential tower. The company is also heading a consortium that is redeveloping the former AXA Tower in Shenton Way. A patient at the Perennial Rehabilitation Hospital in Tianjin. PHOTO: ST First-mover advantage Perennial's listing plans come on the back of big ambitions to expand in China's medical and eldercare sectors. In late 2024, it announced the 500-bed Perennial General Hospital Tianjin, the first such facility to be fully foreign-owned in China, with a one billion yuan investment. Months later, it inked a deal to build a second fully foreign-owned hospital in Guangzhou, also with a one billion yuan investment. Perennial is now concluding talks to open another fully foreign-owned hospital in Shanghai, said Pua. Tianjin, Guangzhou and Shanghai are among the nine trial cities where China has allowed fully foreign-owned hospitals to operate, in a pilot announced in September 2024. The other trial cities are Beijing, Nanjing, Suzhou, Fuzhou, Shenzhen and Hainan. Pua hopes to do projects in more than half of these nine cities. 'We think the Chinese medical (sector) is just at a very nascent stage… The market is huge, so we want to seize this opportunity. I think we have a first-mover advantage.' He sees the Chinese authorities being supportive of private operators such as Perennial that can service the medical needs of the upper middle class segment. The company also wants to ride on China's emerging medical tourism industry. It hopes to attract patients from Russia, Central Asia and South-east Asia – including Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, said Pua. He views Guangzhou as an ideal location for medical tourism, due to its good air connectivity, infrastructure and weather. Perennial's rehabilitation facilities could also be a pull factor, with their combination of Western and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), he added. That said, he acknowledged that the more challenging part is attracting patients who are willing to undertake surgery, and emphasised the need to build trust and reputation. Dr Daniel Liu, president of Perennial's general hospital in Tianjin, says the company wants to grow medical tourism in China. PHOTO: ST Perennial's Tianjin general hospital aims to have 30 per cent of its revenue come from international patients within its first year, said its president, Dr Daniel Liu. 'Medical tourism can't yet be called an industry in China; there are some signs, but not yet. What we hope to do now is to make this cake bigger,' he said during a tour of the hospital. Dr Liu believes that the hospital could even attract patients from the UK, where waiting times for surgeries are long. Some of China's specialised medical services – such as cardiology, orthopaedics and urology – are competitive with international peers, he said. 'Very aggressive' Perennial is 'actually very aggressive' with its expansion plans, said Tan Bee Lan, the company's healthcare chief executive, on the sidelines of a visit to a Renshoutang facility in Shanghai. Asked about the timing of the moves – amid global uncertainty and weak consumer spending in China – Tan said that she does not see a 'material effect', given the counter-cyclical nature of healthcare. There is also an opportunity to secure assets at attractive valuations. 'You should take projects when no one wants to do them – that is when you get the land, the property, at a very reasonable price… This is what Perennial is doing. We're going around very aggressively, looking at suitable properties to take over,' she said. Tan Bee Lan, Perennial's healthcare chief executive, is sanguine about macroeconomic headwinds. PHOTO: ST Perennial also plans to apply what it has learnt in Tianjin to an upcoming Singapore project: the city-state's first private assisted-living development, for which the company won a tender in June 2023. Said Pua: 'To be honest, it's very, very difficult to make money in Singapore because of the high real estate costs, the high labour costs… But I think being headquartered in Singapore, we thought (it would be) good to do something and (showcase) a model.' 'So this project will contain the ingredients that we have in Tianjin,' he added, citing how the development in Parry Avenue will also integrate eldercare with TCM rehabilitation and a geriatric care centre. With the Tianjin hospital opening more doors, Pua believes that the company is two to three years 'ahead of anybody' in its expansion plans. 'I'm excited,' he said. Perennial's key shareholders include agribusiness Wilmar International – where Pua is also chief operating officer – and Wilmar co-founder Kuok Khoon Hong.
Straits Times
15-06-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Malaysia's IOI Properties targets potential Singapore Reit listing in 2027
The acquisition will give IOI Properties full ownership of South Beach, which comprises South Beach Tower (pictured), South Beach Avenue and the JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG SINGAPORE - Malaysia's IOI Properties Group is planning to list a real estate investment trust (Reit) in Singapore by 2027, as part of a plan to monetise its assets and cut debt, according to a Malaysia investment bank. The Reit will include Singapore properties such as the South Beach mixed development and IOI Central Boulevard, which have an estimated combined valuation of $7 billion to $8 billion, wrote Hong Leong Investment Bank analyst Tan Kai Shuen in a June 11 report. Citing intel from a meeting with IOI Properties chief executive Lee Yeow Seng, Mr Tan noted that the Singapore Reit listing is part of a two-pronged monetisation strategy that also includes a Malaysia Reit listing targeted for mid-2026, with assets valued at RM7 billion (S$2.11 billion) to RM8 billion. Both listings are expected to improve cash flow and reduce IOI Properties' net gearing, which could rise to around 0.93 times following its recent acquisition of partner City Developments' (CDL) stake in South Beach. CDL on June 4 agreed to sell its 50.1 per cent stake in South Beach to IOI Properties for about $834.2 million in a deal valuing the complex at about $2.75 billion. It first bought the site for nearly $1.69 billion in 2007 in partnership with a unit of state-owned Dubai World Corp and El-Ad Group. The two partners later exited the project and IOI Properties took a stake in 2011. The acquisition, expected to be complete in the third quarter, will give IOI Properties full ownership of South Beach, which comprises South Beach Tower, South Beach Avenue and the JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach. It is expected to be included in IOI Properties' Singapore Reit, together with IOI Central Boulevard. The flagship office property opened in 2024 in the Marina Bay area, eight years after IOI Properties put up a $2.57 billion bid for the site in a November 2016 government land sale tender. The Reit, targeted to list in 2027, is expected to help IOI Properties lighten its debt load as it expands its presence in the Singapore Central Business District, Mr Tan noted in his report. Besides South Beach and IOI Central Boulevard, IOI Properties is also the developer of Marina View, after acquiring the site for $1.5 billion in September 2021. It is now building a new mixed-use development on the site that will house a W Singapore luxury hotel as well as new branded residences. In late 2024, Mr Lee in his personal capacity also acquired Shenton House at Shenton Way for $538 million in a collective sale transaction. He told the media that the intention is to redevelop Shenton House into a mixed-use development with premier office space and luxury branded serviced residences. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Times
11-06-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Centurion shares hit all-time high on submission to list Reit on SGX
[SINGAPORE] Shares of Centurion rose on Wednesday (Jun 11) afternoon after the company announced its listing application of a real estate investment trust (Reit) to the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Monetary Authority of Singapore. As at 1 pm, the counter climbed to S$1.53, 3.4 per cent or S$0.05 higher than its Tuesday closing price of S$1.48, with around 2.4 million shares changing hands, ShareInvestor data showed. This is the highest price Centurion shares have risen to since they started trading in 1995. On Tuesday, Centurion said the application is still under review, but the Reit it is aiming to establish will comprise some of the group's worker and student accommodation assets. The company said the details of the initial public offering (IPO) and proposed establishment are still being finalised. 'The listing of the Reit will be subject to, among other things, market conditions, commercial negotiations, the relevant regulatory, shareholders' and other approvals being obtained, and the execution of definitive agreements by the relevant parties,' it added. Centurion was previously featured in RHB's Singapore Small Cap Jewels 2025 as one of its top stock picks, among other companies with small market capitalisation. For its Q1 financial results ended Mar 31, Centurion posted a 13 per cent increase in revenue to S$69 million. This was driven by positive rental revisions across markets and strong financial occupancies both in Singapore and the UK.
New Straits Times
10-06-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
CGS Malaysia supports WCT's RM560mil listing of Paradigm Reit
KUALA LUMPUR: CGS International Securities Malaysia says it has completed its role as joint bookrunner and underwriter for Paradigm Real Estate Investment Trust's RM560 million initial public offering (IPO). Paradigm Reit's IPO, in conjuction with its listing on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia, raised RM560 million in gross proceeds for its sponsor WCT Holdings Bhd. This marks the largest Malaysian Reit IPO in over a decade and represents one of the largest listings on the local bourse so far this year, CGS Malaysia said. The company said the IPO's 560 million units on offer were priced at RM1.00 per unit with an indicative distribution yield of 7.16 per cent in 2025. "Paradigm Reit saw positive institutional demand, with the full subscription of the institutional tranche of 426.59 million units, including reallocated units from the retail portion, amid challenging market conditions. "The completion of Paradigm Reit's IPO highlights the enduring quality of its RM2.4 billion portfolio of retail assets across key population centres in West Malaysia," it said. The assets are Bukit Tinggi Shopping Centre, Paradigm Mall Petaling Jaya and Paradigm Mall Johor Bahru. "The Reit's portfolio boasts full or near-full occupancy and a diversified tenant mix, combined with WCT's backing as its sponsor, serves as a solid foundation for the Reit's long-term performance," said Alan Inn, deputy chief executive officer of CGS Malaysia. "The success of Paradigm Reit's IPO underscores the resilience and depth of Malaysia's equity capital markets, and reaffirms our commitment to supporting corporate development and fundraising initiatives in Malaysia," he added.
New Straits Times
10-06-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
Paradigm Reit eyeing three hotels, KLIA gateway
KUALA LUMPUR: Paradigm Real Estate Investment Trust (Paradigm Reit), a local real estate investment trust, plans to acquire three hotels and a commercial gateway over the next three years. The assets are the Hyatt Place Johor Bahru Paradigm Mall, Le Méridien Petaling Jaya, Premier Hotel Klang, and the Gateway@Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Terminal 2. Paradigm Reit Management Sdn Bhd's Investment, Finance and Accounts director, Chong Kian Fah said the proposed acquisition would be funded through a 50:50 combination of cash and newly issued Reit units. "We plan to raise the cash portion through medium-term notes (MTNs). Our proposal is to pay the vendor half in cash and half in new Reit units," he said at a press conference following Paradigm Reit's listing ceremony today. Previously, it was reported that the unit trust aims to acquire the three hotels in 2026, and the commercial gateway in 2027 or 2028. The unit trust, which debuted on the Main Market today, opened unchanged from its initial public offering (IPO) price of RM1.00, with 1.73 million shares traded. Meanwhile, in terms of expansion, its executive director and chief executive officer, Chuah Kah Noi said that as the largest Reit presence in Johor Bahru, the team is also looking to acquire more assets in the state, focusing on those that are yield-accretive. She believes that Paradigm Reit is well-positioned to maintain a stable outlook, given the current sales and occupancy levels across its portfolio of assets. "For most shopping malls, what is critical is sales. The more sales you drive to your tenants, the more profitable they will be, and the more likely they are to stay. "Occupancy across our entire portfolio is quite strong. Our asset in Johor Bahru is about 99.3 per cent, in Petaling Jaya it is close to 98 per cent, and Bukit Tinggi Shopping Centre is fully leased at 100 per cent," she said. She added that Paradigm Mall in Johor Bahru as well as Paradigm Mall in Petaling Jaya are expected to continue performing well into next year, benefiting from the Visit Malaysia 2026 campaign and the close collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia.
