KWAP unit to serve as platform to invest in property devt
KUALA LUMPUR: The Retirement Fund Inc’s (KWAP) newly set-up property arm, KWEST Sdn Bhd, will serve as a prime platform for the fund to invest in property development projects locally.
Its chief executive officer, Datuk Wan Kamaruzaman Wan Ahmad, said KWEST’s strategies and priorities were to execute growth through partnerships and selected projects that were aligned with the firm’s values.
The second largest pension fund had previously bought 13.53 hectares (ha) of Seri Tanjung Pinang 2 in Penang. It has 0.29 ha in Jalan Changkat Kia Peng and 0.50 ha in Jalan Stonor here.
“We are in the process of obtaining the land title for the Seri Tanjung Pinang 2,” he said during the media briefing yesterday.
Under its alternative investment plan, KWAP allocated 10 per cent of its investment for property segment, and following the acquisition of the land, the investment was expected to grow further, he said.
On whether KWAP would increase its property investment in the overseas markets, Wan Kamaruzaman said, the focus would remain on the local market as it offered better returns.
“The returns from overseas markets, due to the volatility and current economic condition, stood at less than five per cent.
“With the local market offering better returns, why should we diversify into the global market?” he said.
He said KWAP’s real estate portfolios were mostly overseas – Australia, UK and Germany.
In the Klang Valley, the company owned the Integra Tower and AIA Cap Square Tower, he said.
Separately, he said, KWAP was looking to seal its deal on buying a minority stake in a foreign-owned insurance company by end of this month.
“Negotiations are still on going and insurance companies are expected to submit their proposals to Bank Negara Malaysia within this month,” he said, adding that foreign insurers were given time until end of this month to submit their divestment plans to the central bank.
He said KWAP was currently meeting with the top two foreign insurers in the country.
However, he declined to name the companies.
We are in the process of obtaining the land title for the Seri Tanjung Pinang 2. Datuk Wan Kamaruzaman Wan Ahmad, KWAP chief executive officer