Robert Kuok : Allgreen Properties has bought the Seletar Mall, a shopping mall in the northeastern part of Singapore, for S$550 million ($412 million) as the developer controlled by Malaysian billionaire Robert Kuok expands its retail footprint in the city-state.
The property was sold by Cuscaden Peak—jointly owned by tycoon Ong Beng Seng’s Hotel Properties and companies linked to state-owned Temasek Holdings—and partner Singapore-based United Engineers (a subsidiary of Chinese billionaire Zhong Sheng Jian’s Yanlord Land) to Allgreen after Paragon REIT (formerly SPH REIT) waived its option to buy the property from its sponsor.
With a net lettable area of 189,467 square feet (17,602 square meters), the suburban mall serves the high-density residential areas of Sengkang and Punggol in northeastern Singapore, Cushman & Wakefield and JLL, which brokered the deal, said in a joint statement. The property is 100% leased and counts NTUC FairPrice, Haidilao and Uniqlo among its key tenants.
“Suburban malls have witnessed stellar performance post-Covid with full occupancy for most malls and strong rental reversion,” Shaun Poh, executive director of capital markets at Cushman and Wakefield, said in the statement.
“The robust bidding result from our sale campaign is a testament to the solid appetite from investors for quality retail assets which are highly resilient and defensive.” Poh said “a handful” of investors expressed interest in buying the mall.
The acquisition will diversify the asset base of Allgreen, which owns the Great World City office, retail and serviced apartment complex as well as Tanglin Mall, both near the Orchard Road shopping district. The company is expanding its retail footprint amid a recovery in retail spending, which rose 1.3% in January from a year ago.
“Singapore’s suburban retail sector continues to be highly sought after by the global and domestic capital seeking exposure in the tightly held retail investment market,” Ting Lim, head of capital markets at JLL said. In December 2023, NTUC Enterprise sold a portfolio of 18 shopping malls in two separate deals for S$255 million, while Hong Kong’s Link REIT bought Jurong Point and Thomson Plaza from Mercatus, also part of NTUC, for S$2.2 billion the year before.
Allgreen—the privately held real estate arm of the Kuok group—has been stepping up its investments in Singapore, a haven for the world’s richest and host to more than 1,000 family offices from around the world. It’s currently developing Pasir Ris 8, a residential and shopping mall complex integrated to the Pasir Ris transport hub in the easternmost part of Singapore.
With a net worth of $11.4 billion, Kuok, who turned 100 years old last October, is the wealthiest man in Malaysia with interests in commodities, real estate and shipping. Kuok founded the internationally renowned Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts chain in Singapore in 1971.
His youngest son, Kuok Khoon Hua, is chairman and CEO of Hong Kong-based Kerry Properties, while nephew Kuok Khoon Hong runs palm oil giant Wilmar International, in which the older Kuok has a valuable stake.
A Little About Robert Kuok
- Robert Kuok is the richest man in Malaysia. He owns Kuok group, which has interests in hotels, real estate and commodities.
- He founded the internationally renowned Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts chain in Singapore in 1971.
- His nephew Kuok Khoon Hong runs Wilmar International, in which Kuok has a valuable stake.
- Robert Kuok’s youngest son Kuok Khoon Hua is chairman and CEO of Hong Kong property company Kerry Properties.
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