BlackRock To Double Office Space At 20 Anson Road
SINGAPORE – BlackRock, the world’s biggest asset manager with US$10 trillion assets under management, is in talks to lease three more office floors at the 20 Anson Road office building, where it is already occupying three levels, reported Bloomberg on Thursday afternoon (23 June, SGT).
The take up of additional floorspace at the commercial property located in Singapore’s central business district (CBD) comes as the company is set for a major expansion in the city-state as other global firms look to tap capital flows into Southeast Asia.
Sources revealed that as part of BlackRock’s Singapore office expansion, around 30 employees will relocate from another office in the city-state and at least 10 staff are expected to move from Hong Kong, which includes a small number from the company’s equities and exchange-traded fund (ETF) operations.
BlackRock’s move highlights a trend of multinational companies considering building up their presence in the city-state, which is considered as the gateway to Southeast Asia. Singapore is benefiting from capital inflows amid global geopolitical tensions and a regulatory crackdown in China.
“Asia Pacific is one of BlackRock’s key growth engines, offering many transformational opportunities,” said the company in a statement.
“We are expanding our footprint to match our ambitions, and will continue to increase resources particularly in South-east Asia and Greater China to capture growth areas including exchange-traded funds & indexing, alternatives, and sustainable investing.”
The asset manager’s Singapore office is already being boosted with senior appointments. Peter Loehnert relocated there from London last year as head of ETF & index investing for Asia Pacific. Belinda Boa, Head of active investments for Asia Pacific, is moving from Hong Kong for family reasons, one of the sources disclosed.
Singapore’s rising status as a commercial hub, which is supported by several of financial institutions that have started to move employees to the city-state, stands in contrast with Hong Kong, where the controversial national security law and harsh COVID curbs have prompted businesses and people to leave.
The city-state is viewed as an appealing location for setting up headquarters due to its low taxes and political stability, in addition to developed financial and legal system
