NAREIT has had an active start to 2017 in terms of international outreach efforts.
China Initiative
Michael Grupe, NAREIT’s executive vice president for research and investor outreach, and Bonnie Gottlieb, NAREIT’s senior vice president for industry and member affairs, traveled to Beijing in March as part of an ongoing NAREIT initiative in China.
NAREIT is acting as a resource for Chinese regulators working to create a REIT regime and for institutional investors and fund managers interested in investing in global REITs. Additionally, NAREIT is facilitating cooperation between NAREIT members and investors and developers in China.
During this visit, Grupe and Gottlieb had a series of one-on-one meetings with several Chinese regulators; the Asset Management Association of China and the Insurance Asset Management Association of China, both of which represent asset managers; large institutional investors, some of which have entered into joint ventures or otherwise worked with U.S. REITs; large financial institutions; and the China REITs Alliance, an organization working to encourage REIT formation in China.
Following the Beijing meetings, Grupe attended the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2017. Similar to the World Economic Forum, the Boao Forum brings together leading government officials, policymakers, investors, economists and academics from across Asia, Europe and North America to share ideas and perspectives regarding major economic, development and policy issues in Asia and the Pacific Rim and beyond. Grupe participated in four sessions at the event, including one on asset securitization and one on China’s initiative for infrastructure investment in Asia. The sessions provided opportunities to communicate with key policymakers, government officials and investors about the benefits of REIT-based real estate investment.
REESA
Gottlieb also joined NAREIT President and CEO Steve Wechsler in traveling to Vancouver to attend the semi-annual meeting of the Real Estate Equity Securitization Alliance (REESA), hosted by the Real Property Association of Canada (REALPAC).
REESA’s mission is to facilitate the global investment in securitized real estate through increased interaction among REESA member organizations. NAREIT’s REESA partners include the Asia Pacific Real Estate Association (APREA), the Association for Real Estate Securitization (ARES), the British Property Federation (BPF), the European Public Real Estate Association (EPRA), the Property Council of Australia (PCA) and REALPAC.
The meeting in Vancouver included discussions about:
- REESA’s global financial standards initiatives;
- Sustainability issues around the globe;
- Proposed REESA projects to measure global commercial real estate assets and to develop a current database of global REIT regimes; and
- Important developments at each of the REESA member organizations and legislative and regulatory actions in the regions served by the member organizations.
(Contact: Bonnie Gottlieb at bgottlieb@nareit.com)