Head of Asia’s Largest REIT Plans to Retire After 16 Years at Firm

(Bloomberg) – George Hongchoy plans to retire as the president of Ashet Management Ltd.

Hong Kong -based link, said on Tuesday, 63 -year -old Hongchoy will stay with the company while looking for the successor, he said.

Hongchoy, a former investment banker, joined Link as Chief Finance Manager in 2009 before moving on to the highest job the following year. The link manages Link GYO, which works 226 billion HK ($ 29 billion) in retail, office and logistics assets according to the website.

Under Hongchoy’s term of office, the connection GYO doubled the Hang Seng index and returned 10.2% per year, including dividends, compared to 5% annual earnings for Hong Kong’s main equity indicator.

During this time, the link diversified its portfolio, which initially includes low quality neighborhood shopping centers in Hong Kong. It is also organizing office buildings and shopping centers in China, Australia, Singapore and England. Hongchoy became one of the highest paid executives in Hong Kong and paid $ 70 million annually.

The link also expanded to the fund management. Last year, he hired John Saunders, former President of Asia-Pacific Real Estate in Blackrock Inc., to lead the operation known as link Real Estate Partners.

Link President Duncan Owen, “In a challenging market, the ongoing flexibility of the link shows the underlying power of the business,” he said. “With the latest launch of Link Real Estate Partners, we gain a good momentum in our efforts to enlarge and diversify our investment platform.”

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