An upgrade to the investment team at one of Singapore’s biggest institutions leads the first collection of personnel moves for February, as Keppel Ltd promotes one of its senior team members. There’s also more turnover at Canada’s CDPQ and a flock of new directors at listed companies in Hong Kong and Singapore.
Singapore’s Keppel Ltd has promoted Dongliang Lai to head of investments for Singapore, according to a LinkedIn update. Lai received his upgrade this month after spending more than two years as a director with Keppel Capital, the fund management division of the Temasek Holdings-backed group. The graduate of Nanyang Technological University also has previous experience with Chelsfield, AEW and Pramerica Real Estate Investors (now PGIM Real Estate).
Canada’s Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) continues to see turnover in its senior ranks with managing directors Cyril Cabanes (pictured) and Deepak Malhotra having left the firm’s Asia Pacific team, according to a report by industry publication Infrastructure Investor. CDPQ announced last month that it is merging its Ivanhoe Cambridge real estate investment division into its main operation with the Montreal-based institution saying that Ivanhoe president and chief executive officer Nathalie Palladitcheff will be leaving following completion of the transition.
Blackstone announced on 29 January that it has hired Thomas R Nides, a former vice chairman of Morgan Stanley, deputy secretary of state and ambassador to Israel to serve as the firm’s vice chairman for strategy and client relations. Nides served as chief operating officer and vice chairman during more than a decade at Morgan Stanley and was deputy secretary of state and chief operating officer at the State Department in the Obama administration.
Far East Orchard CEO, Lui Chong Chee
The managers of CapitaLand Ascott Trust announced to the Singapore stock exchange on 31 January that they have appointed Lui Chong Chee as an independent, non-executive director of the Singapore-listed REIT with effect from the following day. Lui is a veteran of Singapore’s investment world, including having served as managing director and chief executive officer of Far East Orchard from 2014 through 2019. The graduate of New York University also has previous experience as group chief financial officer for Raffles Medical Group.
Hang Lung Group Ltd notified the Hong Kong stock exchange on 31 January that it has appointed May Siew Boi Tan as an independent, non-executive director of the company, with effect from 20 March. Tan served as an executive director and chief executive officer of Standard Chartered Bank in Hong Kong from 2014 through 2017 after a long career with the bank. She has also served on the boards of Link REIT and HSBC Insurance (Asia) Ltd.
GuocoLand has appointed Christine Fellowes as an independent, non-executive director on its board with effect from 25 January, according to a statement to the SGX a day earlier. Now 61, Fellowes joins the board of the Singapore-listed developer after a long career in the Asia Pacific media industry, including having served as managing director of international media distribution with NBC Universal’s Asia unit from 2020 through 2022.
CBRE announced on 2 February that it has appointed Kelvin Chan as an executive director and head of its capital advisors division for Hong Kong with effect from that day. Chan will report to Jonathan Chau, executive director and head of investment property and private office in CBRE’s Hong Kong capital markets division, as well as to Greg Hyland, who runs the business unit for Asia Pacific. Chan, who was previously CBRE’s head of capital markets for China, will now focus on growing the company’s investment advisory arm in the city.
UK luxury developer Berkeley Group has hired Clement Lai as head of Berkeley Private Clients, based in Hong Kong, according to a LinkedIn update. Lai takes on his new role after spending a half-year as senior director and head of international residential for southern China for Knight Frank Greater China. The veteran residential broker also worked for nearly a decade with the international residential division at Savills in Hong Kong.
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