Lippo to shift Reits from Singapore to Indonesia: CEO

[JAKARTA] Indonesian conglomerate Lippo Group plans to shift two real estate investment trusts (Reits) with 35 trillion rupiah (S$3.63 billion) in assets from Singapore to Indonesia in order to benefit from tax breaks offered by Jakarta, its chief executive said.

Indonesia's government last week announced incentives aimed at getting companies to create Reits by removing double taxation that may apply to such businesses.

"Because of the government policy, we think that Indonesia has very good potential for Reits," Lippo Group CEO James Riady told reporters on Wednesday. It aims to boost the asset value of the Reits to more than 100 trillion rupiah in three to four years, he added.

The property-to-retail group's two Singapore-listed Reits are Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust and First Real Estate Investment Trust.

REUTERS