Ming Arcade sold to Singapore family office for record S$3,125 psf ppr

FREEHOLD commercial site Ming Arcade has been sold for S$172 million by a public tender exercise which closed on Dec 15.

The sale price translates to S$3,125 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), and well exceeds exclusive marketing agent Savills Singapore’s estimate of “more than S$140 million” when the property was put up for sale in mid-November.

In a press statement on Friday (Dec 16), Savills highlighted that the sale price breaks the previous price record of S$2,910 psf ppr paid by Hong Kong-listed Shun Tak Holdings for Park House’s en-bloc sale site in 2018.

It also beats the property’s reserve price by 34 per cent, according to Savills, who said it received multiple bids after a “large number of buyers” evaluated the site.

Ming Arcade’s owners are represented by Thomas Toh, solicitor of CTLC Law Corporation.

The buyer is the Royal Group of Companies, a Singapore-based, single-family office founded by its chairman Asok Kumar Hiranandani. The company intends to redevelop its newly-purchased site.

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Hiranandani and his son, Bobby, who is also a co-chair of the group, said: “Ming Arcade used to be an urban and vibrant lifestyle hub back in the 1980s and we are pleased and eager to embark on the rejuvenation of this enclave of Orchard Road precinct and restore the grandeur it deserves”.

The family office’s investments span hospitality, office towers and retail, residential, industrial, and conserved assets across Asia Pacific and beyond. Notable names under its investment portfolio include Sofitel Singapore Sentosa Resort & Spa as well as the upcoming Raffles Hotel in Sentosa.

The site is 12,132 square feet (sq ft) and presently houses a seven-storey commercial complex comprising three basement levels, 88 units and an existing verified development baseline of 55,046 sq ft, which is equivalent to a plot ratio of 4.54. It has a height control of up to 20 storeys.

The freehold project was completed in 1982 by Ming Arcade, a subsidiary of People’s Park Development owned by the late Ho Kok Cheong.