Singapore’s real estate investment trusts (Reits) sector has grown to be the sixth largest in the world and the third largest in Asia Pacific. Against this backdrop, SMU Professor of Finance Francis Koh, who is the first Mapletree Professor of Real Estate, delivered the inaugural Mapletree Annual Lecture on 26 November, where he elaborated on how this growth can be further fuelled so that Singapore’s real estate companies can move up the global ranks. The topic resonated with the 200 guests who attended the first Mapletree Annual Lecture. Comprising mostly of industry practitioners, the audience also included government officials, academics and students.
[Photo: Prof Francis Koh speaking at the inaugural Mapletree Annual Lecture.]
According to Prof Koh, Singapore already provides an attractive business environment, with the tax pass-through (of income received by S-Reits) and waiver of stamp duties in the purchase of properties by S-Reits. To attract more Reits to list in Singapore, he suggested that “we need a clearer statement to provide certainty that these concessions are permanent, or that they will be available for a long period of time.” He also suggested relaxing the leverage ceiling for Reits with robust credit standing.
Furthermore, S-Reits can attract more investors through diversification. “Reits should be more diversified and invest in more assets, more cities, more locations… smaller Reits to merge to attain scale to go international, to go regional. S-Reits could also incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into their portfolios, and work with private banks to gain greater access to a different base of investors, such as high-net-worth individuals,” he added.
The lecture was followed by a dynamic panel discussion moderated by Professor Gerard George, Dean of Lee Kong Chian School of Business, and comprising Mr Chua Tiow Chye, Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer, Mapletree Investments; Mr Wen Khai Meng, Senior Advisor, Group Strategy, CapitaLand Limited; Mr Gan Seow Ann, Executive Vice Chairman, Global Wealth Management, UBS AG; and Prof Koh.
[Photo: Panel discussion moderated by (far right) Prof Gerard George, Dean of SMU Lee Kong Chian School of Business. (L-R) Prof Francis Koh; Mr Gan Seow Ann, Executive Vice Chairman, Global Wealth Management, UBS AG; Mr Chua Tiow Chye, Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer, Mapletree Investments; Mr Wen Khai Meng, Senior Advisor, Group Strategy, CapitaLand Limited.]
The panelists discussed some of the trends, challenges and opportunities that the industry is facing today. Mr Chua commented that going forward, the key is to stay ahead of the trend, elaborating that Mapletree ‘went into the UK and started looking at student housing a bit earlier than others and now every developer is looking at it.’ Other trends which are presenting themselves include the proliferation of data centres and co-working spaces. He also shared that there is increasing interest in sustainability building features and a demand for buildings with high environment standards by MNC tenants.
[Photo: Mapletree's Mr Chua Tiow Chye sharing a light moment with the audience during the panel discussion.]
The Mapletree Professorship in Real Estate and the Mapletree Annual Lecture have been made possible by a generous endowed gift of $3 million from Mapletree to SMU in 2017. With 1:1 government matching, the total sum of $6 million has enabled the University to establish in January 2018 a multi-faceted partnership named the ‘Mapletree Real Estate Programme’, which encompasses four components. These are: the (i) Mapletree Professorship in Real Estate; (ii) Mapletree Awards for talented students taking the SMU Real Estate Track; (iii) Mapletree Real Estate Business Study Trip Grants that support local and overseas field trips; and (iv) Speaker Events to engage the industry and the community in real estate-related topics.
In her opening remarks, SMU’s Provost, Professor Lily Kong, expressed her gratitude to Mapletree for its generosity and the confidence placed in the University. “The Mapletree Professorship in Real Estate and today’s Mapletree Annual Lecture is an affirmation of SMU’s research excellence as we strengthen our efforts to generate thought leadership around real estate investment and finance through our faculty expertise. Aside from enabling the development of research insights, today’s Lecture also serves as an effective platform for private-public-academic discourse and outreach to the wider community on real estate-related topics.”
[Photo: SMU Provost, Prof Lily Kong, welcoming the audience to the inaugural Mapletree Annual Lecture.]
