They are the Sofitel Bali Nusa Dua Beach Resort and Hilton Garden Inn Kuala Lumpur, for which it will borrow US$62.5 million (Bt2.08 billion) and issue up to 415 million shares for subscription by the existing unit-holders (at least 50 per cent) and by the public.

The deals will raise its asset under management (AUM) to Bt10 billion, it said. Its management expressed confidence in the target properties’ great potential, citing growth in the number of domestic and international tourists.

James Lim, executive director of Strategic Property Investors Co Ltd (SPI), an independent professional real estate investment trust (REIT) management firm, said the two target properties have great potential. Bali is an international tourist destination for which Indonesia grants free visas to tourists from 169 countries.

It posted growth in the number of tourists for the past 10 years at an annualised rate of 14.6 per cent, with the number of tourists reaching 5.5 million in 2017 and expected to jump to 6.5 million this year.

Kuala Lumpur ranked 10th among the world’s most visited cities and, due to its popularity among Chinese, Indian and West Asian tourists, it records constant growth in tourism, with annualised rates for the past 10 years at 4.8 per cent for international tourists and 12.3 per cent for domestic tourists.

Patan Somburanasin, managing director of SPI, noted that SHREIT will finance the investment cost of around Bt5.8 billion by issuing up to 415 million shares to increase its capital and securing loans of Bt2.08 billion, and that the investments will increase the value of its AUM to Bt10 billion from the current level of around Bt5 billion and will turn it into one of the largest REITs on the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

Under a memorandum of understanding signed at RISC’s headquarters at Magnolias Ratchadamri Boulevard on Monday, the two organisations will collaborate on a three-year study to ascertain any health hazard from the gas, which is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers.

Assoc Professor Dr Singh Intrachooto, chief adviser to RISC and the centre’s signee of the memorandum, said the research would provide Thailand’s first comprehensive data on its building materials’ radon levels.

“Radon is colourless, odorless, and is in the environment, buildings, homes, so it can be hard to detect,” he said.

“But it is also a health risk, responsible for many thousands of deaths globally. We aim to safeguard Thai homes by checking a full range of potential hazards, such as fly ash in cement, to develop data for the construction industry,” he explained.

The firm is also negotiating with an Asian developer to set up a joint venture company for the development of residential projects in Thailand next year. The deal is expected to be completed in the last quarter of this year, chief corporate officer Attapol Sariddipuntawat said at a press conference last week.

Currently, the company’s recurring income from its office buildings in Bangkok accounts for up to nine per cent of revenue. It is expected to reach 15 per cent in 2020 after the investment in the US, he said.

The company will fund its investments through cash flows and the issuance of debentures up to Bt3 billion in the last quarter of the year, Attapol said.

A portion of the proceeds from the debenture issue will be used to repay Bt800 million in outstanding debt that will expire before the end of the year, with the balance to be allocated for its investments in the US and Thailand next year.

After the debenture issue, its debt-to-equity ratio will not exceed 2:1 from the current level of 1.7:1, up from 1.3:1 in 2017, he said.

Meanwhile, the company will invest up to Bt100 million in a start-up as well as cooperate with others in research and development of innovative products, catering to shifts in customers’ lifestyle in line with its move to become a “living solutions provider” firm.

SC Able Co Ltd, the company’s subsidiary, has invested in a start-up application firm, Fixzy, chief executive officer Nuttaphong Kunakornwong told the press briefing.

“We will allocate 1,500-square-metre space on the 14th floor of Shinawatra Tower Three as a co-working centre for application development and Big-Data management, aimed at creating innovative products to meet the demands of homebuyers, Nuttaphong said, adding that it will open in the first half of next year.

He added that the investment and research and development in innovation and technology would change SC’s business landscape to ensure sustainable growth. “SC will become a Living Solutions Provider to blend innovations with our residential projects in response to the evolving lifestyle of residents now and in the future.

We are always ready to rethink our business plans and learn to catch up with the changing behaviours of our customers,” he said.

He added that the company continued to maintain its business goal of generating total revenue of Bt20 billion in 2020. The company is targeting total revenue of Bt17 billion at the end of this year.

It reported total revenue of Bt6.65 billion and Bt704 million net profit in the first half of this year, up 44 per cent and 107 per cent respectively from the same period of last year.

In order to achieve Bt17 billion revenue this year, the company plans to launch 15 new residential projects worth Bt15 billion in the second half of this year, 10 of them will be single detached houses priced at between Bt3 million and Bt60 million per unit; two townhomes – one of them a home-office and the other called V Compound, which combines single detached house and townhome; and a condominium project under the brand Chamber at On Nut.

When combined with the 15 new residential projects and 36 existing projects, the 51 residential projects will yield sales worth Bt47 billion, while the company has total backlog – ready for sale and awaiting transfer to customers – worth Bt10.73 billion when construction is complete.

About 45 per cent of the total will be transferred to the customers in the rest of this year, he said.

JustCo’s co-working centre in Singapore’s Marina Square offers entrepreneurs, startups, and small and medium enterprises (SME) three rental packages:Just Desk at S$98 (Bt2,384) monthly, Just Desk Unlimited at $398 monthy an Just Desk Dedicated at $750 a month – all include flexible access to desk in a communal work space and benefits of shared facilities.

For those in need of privacy, there is Just Studio/dedicted unlimited, starting at S$800 (approx Bt19,400) monthly, said JustGroup Holdings Pte Ltd’s chief executive officer Kong Wan Sing.

A member can choose to renew the contract on a monthly basic, he added.

In the location of Marina Square, the average rent for a serviced office is $750 per 1,000 square feet (92.90 square metres) with the minimum length of a contract being one year.

At JustCo’s premises in AIA Tower Sathorn, the rental fee of Just Desk is set at Bt990 a month; Bt3,900 monthly for unlimited access to desk-space, Bt6,900/month for unlimited access to a personal reserved workspace and desk, and Bt7,500 monthly for an exclusive studio.

For comparison, the average rent of a serviced office in the same property would cost Bt950 per square metre, subject to a yearly contract.

The popularity of a co-working space can be attributed to the difference in rental costs as well as its environment, infrastructure and design, said Suphin Mechuchep, managing director of property consultant JLL Thailand.

To stay competitive, owners of office buildings need to consider adding a shared working space in their properties for individual users, she said.

For retail complexes, a co-working space could boost traffic to the venues amid the challenge of e-commerce.

Suphin said the mix of users have now widened to employees of large corporations wanting their staffs to learn and share ideas in a broader community.

“A co-working space should be easy to access, comes with a good infrastructure, an appealing design and provides both public and private areas,” he said.

“We have a team of eight working at JustCo, doing design work and meeting our clients in a setup that is easy to manage, convenient and economical, he said.

Nicholas Holmes,34, the owner of journalist application provider Clippings.me Pte Ltd and a member of JustCo, said he opted for a co-working space instead of an office because of the lower rental fee.

“JustCo provides quality services. It is a new business model with easy access to our partners,” said Holmes, a UK national working in Singapore.

He moved his company from another co-working office to Marina One, to be close to his home in the country.

Kong Wan Sing, chief executive officer of JustGroup Holding Pte Ltd, the operator of JustCo in Singapore, China, Indonesia and Thailand, said he foresaw the rise of co-working spaces a few years back when entrepreneurs began making changes to their work style.

They needed a place they could share and collaborate with their business partners amid the emergence of startups and the digital economy.

A co-working office is where entrepreneurs, startups, small and medium companies can gain from each others.

Currently, JustGroup manages eight co-working centres in Singapore; two in Bangkok, three in Jakarta and two in Shanghai. The company also operates five serviced offices in Singapore and will inaugurate a third co-working site in Bangkok at Samyan Mitr Town, next year.

It provides a combined space of 70,000 square metres, with an average occupancy rate of over 70 per cent.

The company plans to invest more than US$100 million (Bt3.2 billion) in another 100 locations in 13 Asian markets by 2020, Wan Sing said.

Aside from Thailand, new centres are earmarked for India, Vietnam, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Hong Kong, mainland China, Australia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

As many as 40 centres will be launched in China, occupying more than 4,000 square metres each.

The company has set a target of 250,000 square metres in the 13 Asian countries and territories by 2020, he said.

Co-working spaces have grown to account for about 5 per cent of the total office market in Singapore, rising from just 1 per cent two years ago. The segment is enjoying growth of up to 9 per cent a year, he said.

In Bangkok, co-working spaces currently make up about 1 per cent of the office market of approximately 8 million square metres. Wan Sing predicted the share of co-working spaces in the Thai capital would reach 5 per cent in 2020.

At present, the company manages 9,200 square metres of co-working space in Bangkok at AIA Sathorn Tower and Capital Tower. With the opening of its new premises at Samyan Mitr Town next year, that will increase to 17,200 square metres before reaching 30,000 in 2020, he said.

An occupancy rate of 60 per cent is needed for a new working space in order to recoup the investment within four years, he said, adding that the uptrend in demand presents an good investment opportunity for the company.

Noelle Coak, Regus’s country head for Thailand, Taiwan and Korea, said recently that co-working spaces have emerged as the definitive environment for startups, entrepreneurs and those who think outside of the box, to not only work but to bring people together and build a real community.

“Most startup employees and entrepreneurs are millennials, accustomed to being connected all of the time,” she said, “so it’s no surprise that they are increasingly looking for more inspiring options when working, such as business lounges, co-working spaces, short-term offices or drop-in centres.

“Worker demand is changing, and it’s up to Thai businesses to evolve with their changing workforce.”

Regus is opening a new venue at the Chiang Mai Icon Park Hotel on Maneenopparat Road in June and will start up another premises in Bangkok at the Singha Complex in August. The Regus business centre opened its doors at Bitec’s Bhiraj Tower early this year.

According to a research by Angel Real Estate Consultancy Administrator, ‘Co-working space’ was set up in San Francisco in 2015 and since then it has gathered monentum. According to the World

Economic Forum, freelancers now account for 35 per cent of the total workforce in the United States, 16 per cent in Europe and is accelerating in Asia.

Globally, co-working spaces have been growing rapidly, surging from just 75 spaces in 2007 to more than 7,800 in 2015, according to a CBRE report.

According to Colliers, the first co-working office in Thailand emerged in 2012, pioneered by local operator Hubba in the Ekamai area.

The number of co-working space projects nationwide rose from four in 2012 to 12, 20, 60, 120 and 132 from 2013-2017 and projected to reach 150 by end of the year.

There will soon be 25,000 square metres of new space from 10 projects in Bangkok this year, boosting the total to 125,000, he said. However, that would only account for a mere 1-2 per cent of the total office supply, estimated at 8.8 million square metres.

The transaction, worth Bt91.81 million, was completed on August 15, 2018.

After the deal, Sansiri Plc still hold a 7.29 per cent stake in Winkontent AG from 13.13 per cent, as the balance of 5.83 per cent is held by BTS Sansiri Holding Three Ltd. Winkontent AG is the owner of “Monocle” magazine. Monocle’s businesses include 24-hour, e-commerce, fashion retail and events. It operates in England , US , Canada, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong.

The company also reported total revenue Bt8.3 billion in the first half of this year, a drop of 37 per cent from the same period last year.

However, the company’s board of director has continued to approve an interim dividend of Bt0.04 per share by ex-dividend date on August 28 and pay dividends on September 12, the company reported.

 Verve Tiwanond-Rangsit is a townhome developement, costing Bt730 million. It will open for bookings on August 18-19 at a starting price of Bt1.99 million per unit.

Venue Tiwanond-Rangsit is a single-detached house project at an investment of Bt660 million. The project will open for bookings on August 25-26 at a starting price of Bt3.99 million per unit.