Temasek Holdings

[tikam tikam]

They used to be very distinct but I don't know what is the difference between the 2 anymore. GIC is under pressure also because they are managing CPF money.

IMHO Temasek should have continued to be a "PE fund" instead of listed equities. Fullerton is also confused. That's what happens when you start focusing on PnL instead of strategic sense.

Sorry might have woken from oft catatonic state. It seems a little inconsistent to aim at one thing and then expect to get another thing, and somehow it is miraculously "better" (usually worse but don't say, and never argue). I do not have a solid example.

[greengiraffe]

GIC buys office building in Brazil, marks first wholly-owned investment in Latin America
Published on Dec 12, 2014 11:32 AM

The acquisition of an office building in Rio de Janeiro marks GIC's first wholly-owned investment in Latin America. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

By Marissa Lee

SINGAPORE - Singapore investment company GIC has signed a forward purchase agreement for an office building in downtown Rio de Janeiro for an undisclosed sum.

The building, named Eco Sapucai, is being developed by Hemisfério Sul Investimentos (HSI), a Brazilian private equity real estate fund manager.

Construction is expected to be completed in the first quarter of next year, at which point the deal will be completed. Such an agreement protects GIC's interest should HSI fail to deliver.

Designed by renowned Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer, the 86,060 sqm AAA office building will comprise 17 office storeys, with shops on the ground floor and a helideck at the top.

[greengiraffe]

Singapore's GIC forges ahead with $2.5b portfolio sale
Mercedes Ruehl
393 words
2 Apr 2015
The Australian Financial Review
AFNR
English
Copyright 2015. Fairfax Media Management Pty Limited.

Singaporean sovereign fund GIC is continuing its nearly $2.5 billion sell-down of Australian real estate, and is poised to officially agents to market its extensive industrial portfolio.

It is understood the offshore giant will appoint Colliers International and JLL to sell its total of about 25 assets, worth potentially as much as $1 billion. It will be the largest direct property sale for the sector to date.

GIC, which has a huge global presence in real estate, has built up a vast Australian portfolio since its first direct property investment in the 1990s.

But over the last couple of years it has sold a number of its Australian assets at significant premiums.

Now the group has opted to sell its industrial real estate rather than pursue a public float.

The industrial sector is running hot with more cashed-up offshore buyers emerging in the last six months, which has tightened yields and pushed up prices.

GIC's industrial investments are divided into two lots in total. One interest is part of a joint venture with Australand Property Group and the other is 100 per cent owned by GIC.

GIC did not respond to a request for comment when contacted by The Australian Financial Review. But it is the second major sale flagged for the group just this year. GIC is in the process of selling the landmark Westin Sydney hotel, with price expectations of about $400 million. It purchased the hotel in 2002 for $160 million through its real estate subsidiary.

The sale of the Westin comes about a year after GIC sold the Park Hyatt in Melbourne to Fu Wah International for $135 million.

Shortly after that it sold $505 million worth of shares in diversified property giant GPT Group. GIC purchased its stake of about 12 per cent in GPT in late 2008, becoming a cornerstone investor in the group during the Australian property downturn.

Last year the Singaporean giant also sold 175 Liverpool Street in the Sydney central business district for just less than $400 million. It picked up the office tower for $125 million in 1996.

However, GIC still owns a number of landmark Australian properties, including Chifley Tower and the iconic Queen Victoria Building and Strand Arcade in Sydney, through its Ipoh investment.


Fairfax Media Management Pty Limited

Document AFNR000020150401eb4200010

[greengiraffe]

I v blur liao... GSIC sells Ascendas as fun mgr bought... Capland sold ALZ for a song last yr as well...

Is anyone talking? Maybe its good that there is China Wall... but fun mgrs usually builds pipeline to feed into funds for investors... investors paying eventually?

Caveat Emptor

Singapore giant Ascendas wins race to $1.1b of logistics facilities

Across Asia Ascendas will soon own more than $16 billion of real estate including Australia.

by Robert Harley
The Singapore property giant Ascendas is poised to become a major player in Australian industrial real estate with a bid of about $1.1 billion to buy one of the country's largest portfolios of logistics real estate.

The owner of the portfolio, the Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC, has chosen Ascendas as the preferred bidder.

It is the second billion dollar Australian property sale in as many weeks, after the Chinese sovereign fund CIC bought the $2.45 billion Investa Office portfolio, and will set another benchmark for local real estate.

The yield on Ascendas portfolio is just over 6 per cent, which is very tight for industrial real estate.

Demand for quality industrial assets has soared, with 2014 recording the highest level of industrial property investment yet seen in Australia, due to the sector's relatively high yields and long-term leases.

The GIC assets, understood to comprise more than 600,000 square metres of lettable area in total, are primarily A-Grade and located in major capital markets in key logistics areas. The investment is underpinned by long-term leases to major corporates, like Wesfarmers, for a Kmart Distribution Centre in Sydney, and Pacific Brands for a facility in Victoria.

The opportunity to buy such a portfolio attracted some of the leaders in global real estate including Blackstone, the Canadian heavyweight Ivanhoe Cambridge, in tandem with the Macquarie Group backed manager Logos, and global private equity firm Warburg Pincus in partnership with the Asia-focused logistics real estate fund The Redwood Group.

The portfolio was marketed by Colliers International, represented by Tony Iuliano and Gavin Bishop and JLL represented by Chris Key and Michael Fenton but the final decision was made in Singapore.

Ascendas is part of Acendas-Singbridge formed this year and controlled by two Singapore government entities: Temasek and JTC Corporation.

Ascendas already has a presence in Australia though the Ascendas Hospitality Trust, which owns six properties including the Pullman Sydney Hyde Park, the Pullman and Mercure Melbourne Albert Park and the Pullman and Mercure Brisbane King George Square.

But the group's real focus is on the ownership and management of business space for uses like industrial, distribution, hi-tech, and research and development.

Across Asia, in 10 countries including Singapore, China, India, South Korea and Vietnam, the group manages over $15.7 billion of logistics real estate in a range of listed trusts and private real estate funds.

Soon it will add $1.1 billion of Australian facilities.

[greengiraffe]

Told u liao... even Temasek is confident in CCP...

• Aug 24 2015 at 6:25 PM 
   
  
  
•  Updated Aug 24 2015 at 8:17 PM 
  

Temasek's Fullerton sees opportunity in Asia market carnage

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NaN of
[img=620x0]http://www.afr.com/content/dam/images/g/j/6/h/e/3/image.related.afrArticleLead.620x350.gj4so4.png/1440411449433.jpg[/img]Manraj Sekhon, says Fullerton expects Australia to be one of its biggest markets within five years. Louise Kennerley
by James Eyers
During the hour The Australian Financial Review spent with Manraj Sekhon on Monday morning in Sydney, Shanghai's equity market plunged by 4 per cent, dragging other other Asian markets off a cliff in what would become a savage day of trading across the region.
"There is a major growth scare going on," said Mr Sekhon, the chief executive of Fullerton Fund Management, an Asian-focused asset manager fully owned by Singapore's sovereign wealth fund, Temasek.
"Markets are paranoid about where growth is coming from. This period will be with us for a while yet – I think the episode we are in is going to get worse before it gets better."
Like other investors in Asian equities, Fullerton's portfolios were dragged down on Monday, as markets panicked about the growth trajectory for China's economy after the recent devalution of the renminbi.

But for a bottom-up stock picker such as Fullerton, which favours a long-term view, Mr Sekhon said the market carnage will inevitably provide investment opportunities for his team, which is headquartered in Singapore and has offices in Shanghai, Tokyo and London and manages assets worth $13 billion.
"In my view, this will present interesting long-term buying opportunities, which we are looking at very closely right now," he said on Monday.
"You have a billion-plus people in China, a billion-plus in India, and half a billion people in ASEAN – and  [those markets] are all growing. When you look around the world, where else do you find growth right now?
"Asia is many different markets, there are many different themes. There is much diversity, and sub-economies. Sometimes the narrative gets swamped by China, but it is not just about China. Singapore and Fullerton can be a conduit for capital to target Asia in a very considered, long-term approach."


KEEN TO TAP CAPITAL POOLS
While acknowledging that on such a dramatic day for markets he felt like being on the trading desk (he is also Fullerton's chief investment officer), Mr Sekhon was in Sydney to visit institutions to discuss the ramp-up of Fullerton's Australian presence. The manager is keen to tap the vast pools of capital being accumulated via compulsory superannuation and is attuned to the high allocation of these assets to domestic equities – which Mr Sekhon said will inevitably need to be diversified.
"Over the next five years, I expect Australia to be one of our biggest markets," he said, adding that he is looking for a partner to assist with distribution into the self-managed super fund sector. "All options are on the table. We haven't worked out the details, but we know we want to commit to Australia and that is why we are here."
While not willing to discuss particular securities, three big trends will define growth of Asian equity prices over the long term, Mr Sekhon said, and these would be resilient to the recent gyrations. One is the rise of the Asian consumer, where better standards of living, aspirations and incomes will propel certain stocks in the consumer staples and discretionary sectors. Second is technology, given "Asia is much more connected than other parts of the world and the tech-savvy-ness of the average consumer is very high," he said. And third is financial services, given "the penetration of credit and growth in demand for investment, savings and credit products right across Asia. We see financial services as a powerful theme right across Asia. Asian consumers are getting wealthier, and are looking for interesting savings and investment products," he said.

Fullerton's Asia ex-Japan equities fund has returned 8.5 per cent a year  in US dollar terms over the past three years, and 7 per cent a year since its inception in July 2010. Its global clients include a mix of sovereign wealth funds, pension plans, insurance, endowments and private wealth.
With the National Reform Summit on Wednesday motivated by a desire to overcome Australia's policy paralysis, Mr Sekhon also addressed Singapore's dynamism, where the government is decisive and has created a regulatory environment for business to thrive.
"We are small and nimble and we can move quickly," he said of Singapore. "We are trying to bring in talent and take a long-term approach to become a hub not just for Asia but for the world. You have to be constantly ahead of the game, and always be willing to reinvent yourself. That is deeply rooted in our psyche, which means we can never afford to be insular – we can only look outwards."

[CityFarmer]

Buy at "sales", when the retailer is in a "junk" status...?

Temasek joins MBK-led consortium to bid for Tesco's South Korea unit: sources

SINGAPORE (Aug 27): Asia-focused private equity firm MBK Partners has partnered with Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings to bid for the South Korea arm of British retailer Tesco, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
...
http://www.theedgemarkets.com/sg/article...it-sources

[greengiraffe]

• Sep 13 2015 at 4:42 PM 
   
  
  
•  Updated Sep 13 2015 at 4:42 PM 
  

Rents in Rio towers plunge as Brazil property bubble pops

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NaN of
[img=620x0]http://www.afr.com/content/dam/images/g/j/l/d/z/v/image.related.afrArticleLead.620x350.gjldwx.png/1442126545602.jpg[/img]Real estate markets are faltering across recession-plagued Brazil. Mario Tama
by Juan Pablo Spinetto and Peter Millard
At opposite ends of downtown Rio de Janeiro, projects tied to Donald Trump and Eike Batista – one a billionaire-turned-politician, the other Brazil's most famous ex-billionaire – have come to represent the city's real estate bust.
The 23-story Serrador building, a granite-and-glass art deco tower near Rio's Santos Dumont airport, has sat empty since Batista's failed empire of commodities companies abandoned it last year. Six kilometres away, in the city's gritty port district, an ambitious office project that Trump lent his name to is still nothing more than a weed-filled lot about a year after construction was slated to begin.
While real estate markets are faltering across this recession-plagued country, nowhere is the toll from a sweeping national corruption scandal and commodities collapse more apparent than in Rio. To make matters worse, a flood of new office units that were planned during the boom years of the past decade are now hitting the market, pushing Rio's high-end vacancies to the most in Latin America. Rents that were once on par with New York and Paris are tumbling.
"Rio is going through a very delicate moment," said Ricardo Raoul, a managing director at Paladin Realty Partners LLC, a property fund with about 12 billion reals ($4.36 billion) in projects in Brazil. "There's an increase of inventories together with a lack of demand."

In Leblon, a seaside neighbourhood with views of the Christ the Redeemer statue that houses many of the city's hedge fund managers, office rents have plunged by a third since early 2014. Even more if you price the leases in US dollars: about 60 per cent. In Barra da Tijuca, an up-and-coming neighbourhood on the city's outskirts, phone company TIM Participacoes SA was able to negotiate two years of free rent for its new headquarters in a glass tower with palm trees out front, according to a regulatory filing.
Residential property prices in Brazil's top 20 cities fell in August from July, the first drop since at least 2008, with Rio leading the declines, according to real estate index FipeZap. Prices of Brazilian properties rose 3.3 per cent in the past 12 months, about 6 percentage points below inflation, resulting in a decline in real terms.
Rio monthly office rents fell to 135 reals ($49) per square meter in the second quarter, said CBRE Group Inc., the world's biggest commercial real estate services company. That's about half the price of New York and Paris and is down from a peak of 150 reals ($54) in early 2013. Meanwhile, vacancies have jumped to 23 per cent from less than 3 per cent at the end of 2010.
Like so many of the city's problems, this one too can be traced to the double blow of the scandal at state-run oil giant Petroleo Brasileiro SA and the slump in crude prices. Petrobras halted new business deals with about 30 suppliers after an investigation found evidence of kickbacks to win contracts, forcing at least seven companies with large operations in the city to file for bankruptcy protection. Standard & Poor's stripped the country of its investment-grade credit rating last Wednesday, citing in part the political fallout from the corruption scandal.


Other oil companies are scaling back in Rio after prices more than halved in the past 12 months. Statoil ASA, the Norwegian oil company, gave back one of the seven floors it was occupying in the Manchete building. Trondheim, Norway-based SINTEF, a research foundation for the energy industry, is leaving Rio altogether.
"A good portion of the market was based on the oil industry," said Raul Correa, a partner at commercial agent Office International Realty who has been following the price drop in swanky districts like Leblon. "Now a lot of them are retreating."
At the site of the future Trump Towers Rio, a 5 billion real ($1.8 billion) project announced in 2012, several rundown warehouses jut out from the overgrown brush. There are no signs of development anywhere. Stefan Ivanov, chief executive officer of the project that bought the rights to use Trump's name, said it's still in the planning phase.
"There are various real estate projects under elaboration in Rio de Janeiro that are taking more time than originally anticipated to bring to construction," he said in an emailed response to questions. He declined to comment on the timing of the project or if the budget is being adjusted.

In the nearby Porto Maravilha district, a flood of new projects that's part of an effort to revive the area ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games will only add to the oversupply, Paladin's Raoul said.
A recovery in the market will take time, he cautions. A very long time – as in wait until 2019.
"The outlook," he says, "is very negative."
 



Bloomberg

[greengiraffe]

Wrong term investments amongst the group of wrong term investors? But its definitely sizable...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2...stake-sale

UBS, DBS Said Among Buyers in $6.5 Billion China Post Deal
 Cathy Kit Ching ChanJonathan Browning Chanyaporn Chanjaroen
September 24, 2015 — 9:47 AM SGTUpdated on September 24, 2015 — 5:32 PM SGT

• Temasek, IFC and Alibaba subsidiary also said to be involved
  
• Postal Savings Bank said to be selling about 15 percent stake
  

Postal Savings Bank of China Co., which has the most outlets of any lender in the nation, is nearing an agreement to raise more than $6.5 billion from investors includingUBS Group AG and Temasek Holdings Pte ahead of a planned initial public offering, people familiar with the matter said.
UBS is seeking to invest about $2.5 billion and may syndicate a significant portion of that stock to other investors, the people said, asking not to be identified before an announcement. Singapore’s DBS Group Holdings Ltd. is buying about $250 million of shares, while International Finance Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. will also invest, the people said.
Postal Savings Bank is selling about a 15 percent stake to outside investors, according to the people, as Chinese President Xi Jinping seeks to introduce more market discipline to state-owned enterprises. Some foreign investors were attracted to the bank, which was set up in 2007, because of its relatively clean balance sheet with few legacy bad-loan issues, one of the people said.

The Beijing-based bank is still finalizing the allocations for the group of Chinese and domestic investors, one person said. It plans to make an announcement as soon as next week, and the total allocation could rise to $7 billion or more as commitments come in, the people said. 
Alibaba, Tencent
Chinese investors include Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s financial affiliate, Zhejiang Ant Small & Micro Financial Services Group Co., as well as China Life Insurance Co., and Tencent Holdings Ltd., the people said. China Telecommunications Corp. may also take a stake, pending approval from Postal Savings Bank, one of the people said. Spokesmen at those firms were either not reachable or couldn’t provide an immediate comment.
A press officer at Postal Savings Bank said she couldn’t immediately comment. Representatives for UBS, Temasek, DBS and JPMorgan declined to comment. A Washington-based representative for IFC didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment, while several calls and e-mails to IFC’s media team in Hong Kong and India went unanswered.
Postal Savings Bank’s bad-loan ratio stood at 0.64 percent at the end of 2014, lower than any of China’s listed banks and the sector average of 1.5 percent as of June 30. The bank said it has 478 million individual customers and close to 40,000 outlets nationwide.

The bank’s capital adequacy ratio was 9.56 percent as of December. China’s banking regulator requires non-systemically important banks to have a minimum ratio of 10.5 percent by the end of 2018.
Deposit Base
It has attracted a significant deposit base from China’s vast rural population, which it uses as a low-cost source of funds for lending to small businesses and city commercial banks, according to one of the people. 
The bank, which is an arm of state-owned China Post Group Co., aims to work with some of the investors to help it build out businesses including investment banking, wealth management and micro-finance, the person said. It may sell shares in an overseas initial public offering as early as next year, the people said.
Postal Savings Bank and DBS in January agreed to set up a joint venture consumer finance company, with DBS investing 120 million yuan ($18.8 million) for a 12 percent stake.

[greengiraffe]

http://www.straitstimes.com/business/thi...re-project

A joint project being undertaken by a Temasek Holdings unit and a Chinese entity is about to get its third chief executive in less than five years.
The development involves building a business park for knowledge- based industries in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province.
The Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City, as the project is called, is being developed by Temasek unit Singbridge and the Guangzhou Development District Administrative Committee.

The new boss will be Singbridge executive vice-president Ng Kok Siong, who replaces Mr Chin Phei Chen on Oct 15.
Mr Chin, who has helmed the project for 21/2 years, will return to a senior leadership role within the Temasek group of companies.
The first CEO, Mr Tay Hun Kiat, left after just a little more than one year at the job.

[greengiraffe]

http://www.straitstimes.com/business/tem...gets-a-ceo

All staff of Temasek Holdings, except Ms Ho and chief financial officer Leong Wai Leng, were transferred to TI.

Mr Lee, the former president and chief executive of Temasek unit ST Telemedia, joined Temasek in 2012.
He set up infocommunications firm ST Telemedia as a new business area, overseeing its investments into the Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Americas.
He has been chairing various senior management committees in Temasek for over a year and has been overseeing its daily operations since Ms Ho went on sabbatical leave in April.