AA Reit's Koh Wee Lih to join Keppel Reit manager as CEO

INDUSTRY veteran Koh Wee Lih, the outgoing executive director and chief executive officer of the manager of Aims Apac Reit (AA Reit), will be joining the manager of Keppel Reit as its CEO from Dec 1.

Keppel Reit's manager said in a bourse filing on Tuesday that current CEO Paul Tham will step down from his role on Oct 20 "to pursue other opportunities".

Keppel Reit manager's deputy CEO and head of investment Shirley Ng will be the acting CEO during the leadership transition.

"Wee Lih brings to Keppel Reit his depth of experience in real estate investment, asset management and redevelopment and corporate finance," said Penny Goh, chairman of the manager.

"The board looks forward to working with Wee Lih in Keppel Reit's next phase of growth as we continue our drive to optimise and grow Keppel Reit's portfolio for stable and sustainable returns to our unitholders," she added.

Mr Koh has over 25 years of experience in investment, corporate finance and asset management, of which more than 17 years are in direct real estate, covering investments, developments, asset management and real estate private equity in the Asia-Pacific region.

He had on Sept 8 announced his resignation from AA Reit, where he has been responsible for the overall planning, management and operation for nearly eight years.

Units of Keppel Reit closed flat at S$1.05 on Tuesday, before the announcement. Units of AA Reit closed down S$0.01 or 0.7 per cent at S$1.42.