The second difference between Link REIT and the other Asian REITs is its size. It is Asia’s largest REIT in terms of market capitalisation and assets under management (AUM).
On Dec 28, Link REIT turned out to be the successful bidder of the assets that Mercatus Co-operative, the retail mall arm of NTUC, put up for divestment. Link REIT stands out in Asia because of two glaring differences between it and other listed Asian REITs. First off, Link REIT is the one and only Asian REIT that is internally managed. That is, the asset management, property management companies and the properties themselves are owned by Link REIT and its unitholders.
Investors of S-REITs will be aware that for S-REITs, the asset management and property management companies are usually owned by the sponsor of the REIT, which also has a significant stake in the REIT.
