Hongkong Land is one of Asia’s leading property investment, management and development groups with premium commercial and residential property interests across the region. It owns and manages some five million square feet of commercial space in Hong Kong’s Central Business District serving financial services and related clients. In Singapore it has a significant interest in a number of major developments including the Marina Bay Financial Centre and One Raffles Quay, amounting to about two million square feet.

Hongkong Land dates back to 1889 and is one of Asia’s longest established property groups. Hongkong Land Holdings Ltd is incorporated in Bermuda. It has a premium listing on the London Stock Exchange, and secondary listings in Bermuda and Singapore. The Group's assets and investments are managed from Hong Kong by Hongkong Land Limited. Hongkong Land is 50% owned by Jardine Matheson Holdings

Jardine Matheson Holdings

Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited often referred to as Jardines, is a multinational corporation incorporated in Bermuda and based in Hong Kong. While listed on the London Stock Exchange and the Singapore Exchange, the vast majority of Jardines shares are traded in Singapore...

.

Today

Hongkong Land has a portfolio of office and retail buildings in key Asian cities, with a blue chip list of financial services tenants, and many of the world’s leading luxury retail brands, the likes of Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Armani and Dunhill.
Most of its projects outside Hong Kong are in joint venture with local developers, including the Keppel Group in Singapore, the Vantone Group in Beijing and the Longfor and China Merchants groups in Chongqing.

Presence in Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, the company has continued to upgrade its commercial buildings in Central. In 2003, the redevelopment of Swire House into the new Chater House was completed. Major renovations have since been carried out in the Prince’s Building. The Landmark has also been redeveloped, with the luxury Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hotel and York House added.
The company has also developed three luxury residential buildings on Hong Kong Island in recent years, namely Serenade, The Sail at Victoria and Ivy on Belcher’s.
Since 2003, Hongkong Land has worked with the Hong Kong Government on Central Cityscape - an initiative to enhance and upgrade the physical environment of Central. New pavements, street furniture, modern signage, landscaping, lighting and more greenery are all part of Cityscape’s efforts to raise Central’s attractiveness.

In October 2006, Hongkong Land hosted the CENTRAL Rat Race for the first time in the heart of Central, which has since become an annual event. This charity relay event helps raise funds for MINDSET, a registered charity supporting mental-health related organisations and projects in Hong Kong and mainland China. The inaugural race raised over HK$2 million and since then about HK$8 million has been raised.

Footprint in the rest of Asia

While continuing to invest in Hong Kong, Hongkong Land has significantly expanded its business outside Hong Kong in recent years, and has interests across Asia.

In its commercial portfolio, in Singapore, following One Raffles Link, the company developed One Raffles Quay, another commercial complex, in the Marina Bay area. It also has a major interest in the Marina Bay Financial Centre, a large commercial development that is taking shape as Singapore’s new central business district. The first phase was completed in 2010.
The company owns a 50% stake in Jakarta Land, which is expanding its complex of commercial buildings in the central business district of Jakarta. Hongkong Land also owns prime office and retail space in Bangkok and Hanoi.

On the residential side, the company is in the process of completing two luxury residential projects in Singapore, Marina Bay Residences and Marina Bay Suites. The company also owns MCL Land, a Singapore listed developer that is active in mid to high-end residential projects in Singapore and Malaysia.
In Macau, Hongkong Land has developed, in joint venture with Shun Tak Holdings, One Central Macau. This is a major mixed use development on the waterfront comprising luxury residences, a luxury retail development, the Mandarin Oriental Macau hotel and residences to be managed by the hotel.

Hongkong Land has also developed and is developing luxury and high-end residential units in mainland China, including Central Park and Maple Place in Beijing, Bamboo Grove in Chongqing and other projects in Chongqing and Shenyang. Central Park was one of the first major luxury residential projects in China and was built in phases beginning in 2004.

Founding

Hongkong Land was formed on 2 March, 1889 and was initially named The Hongkong Land Investment and Agency Company Limited. It was founded by two prominent businessmen in Hong Kong — Sir Paul Chater and James Johnstone Keswick. Besides property, Chater was also known for his interests in brokerage and bullion while Keswick was Tai-pan

Tai-Pan

The term tai-pan was originally used to describe a foreign businessman in China or Hong Kong in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The Cantonese colloquialism is now used in a more general sense for business executives of any origin...

 of Jardine, Matheson and Co. Ltd.

Chater had been lobbying for some time in government circles for a new reclamation project in the Victoria District in Central Hong Kong and the construction of a new Praya

Praya

Praya , was a term used in Colonial Hong Kong to refer to a promenade by the waterfront. The name comes from the Portuguese term for the broad stone-faced road that runs parallel along the harbour in front of the city. HSBC and Dent & Co...

 along the harbour front. Six days after the formation of Hongkong Land, he got his way. The reclaimed land was to yield an area of 65 acres (263,045.9 m²) of building land some 250 feet (76.2 m) wide along a new waterfront road that came to be known as Chater Road. This "Central Reclamation" has since become a core element of Hong Kong’s Central District, forming as it does the land between today’s Des Voeux Road Central and Connaught Road Central, including Statue Square and Chater Road itself.

The 4-storey New Oriental Building was the first commercial building on the Central Reclamation built on Marine Lot 278 at No. 2 on the then newly formed Connaught Road and completed in 1898. This building was demolished in the early 1960s and the site is today occupied by the AIA Central building. The Chater Road reclamation can thus be seen as the starting point for Hongkong Land’s development of “Central” as Hong Kong’s business district.

Early Years

Following construction of The New Oriental Building, between June 1904 and December 1905, Central saw the completion of five major buildings that were Hong Kong’s first ‘skyscrapers’. These included the Alexandra Building in 1904, which was built on the location of today’s Alexandra House.

By 1941 the company possessed 13 major properties in Central. The most valuable among them were Marina House, Alexandra Building, Holland House, Queen’s Building and Prince’s Building.

Hongkong Land ceased business for three years and eight months during the Second World War. But when the company reclaimed its office buildings in September 1945, they were all in good structural condition.

The first post-war project came in 1947, adding three more floors to the five-storey Marina House. Then came the redevelopment of 11 and 13 Queen’s Road Central into the nine-storey Edinburgh House, which was completed in 1950. These buildings stood on the sites of today’s Edinburgh Tower and York House.

At the same time, three old buildings on a triangular site formed by Des Voeux Road, Chater Road and Ice House Street — Alexandra Building, Royal Building and Chung Tin Building — were demolished to make way for the 13-storey Alexandra House.

1960s and 1970s

By the mid-1960s Hongkong Land owned nine major office blocks as well as the shopping complex in Prince’s Building and The Mandarin Hotel. These were connected by the first pedestrian bridge over a Central District street. Since then, most of Hongkong Land’s buildings have been linked to one another, forming a network of commercial buildings.

During the 1970s, the Company began investing in international markets, building a portfolio of properties in Australia, Hawaii, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.

Perhaps the biggest feat of Chairman Trevor J. Bedford's leadership during this period was the construction of the Connaught Centre. On 1st June, 1970, the Company paid a then world-record price of HK$258 million at public auction for an important new central reclamation site. On completion in 1973, the 52-level, 696000 square feet (64,660.5 m²) Connaught Centre was Hong Kong’s largest and most advanced office block. It was renamed Jardine House on 1st January, 1989.

Redevelopment during the 1970s of Hongkong Land’s “Central” portfolio began with the demolition of Alexandra House and the construction of what was to be the third building to bear that name on the site. The new 36-level project, which was finished in 1976, and was joined to Prince’s Building, Swire House, The Mandarin Hotel and Connaught Centre by overhead walkways. Today, it forms the hub of a footbridge network connecting Hongkong Land’s commercial portfolio.

Hongkong Land developed residential properties in mid-levels, including May Tower in 1974 and Branksome in 1976. The company also acquired a large tract of land in Pok Fu Lam

Pok Fu Lam

Pok Fu Lam or Pokfulam is a residential area on Hong Kong Island, at the western end of the Southern District.Pok Fu Lam is a valley between Victoria Peak and Mount Kellet, around Telegraph Bay....

 and started construction of the massive Chi Fu Fa Yuen complex. This consisted of 20 towers with 4,258 flats, along with a shopping centre, restaurants and recreational facilities.

1980s and 1990s

The 1980s saw Hongkong Land diversify from its usual property interests, as it bought significant shareholdings in Hong Kong Telephone Company Ltd and Hong Kong Electric Holdings Ltd.

In 1982, Hongkong Land acquired the last major site available in Central with a bid of HK$4.7 billion and began construction of the first phase of Exchange Square. It was the largest commercial complex in the territory at the time and the most technologically sophisticated.

The year 1982 saw the property market in Hong Kong plunge dramatically and in the following two years rentals halved. This was a period of financial difficulty for Hongkong Land as it looked to reorganise itself and reduce its debt burden through asset disposals and restructuring measures. Hongkong Land sold its international properties as well as its non-core assets in Hong Kong, including its interests in Hong Kong Telephone and Hong Kong Electric. But its core assets in the heart of Central were left untouched.

In 1984 the property market began to look up again and in late 1985 Hongkong Land completed and opened the first phase of its new flagship property, One and Two Exchange Square. In 1988, the final third phase of Exchange Square was completed and The Forum was opened.

The Landmark, another major focal point for Central, was completed in two phases in 1980 and 1983. It comprised two 47-level office blocks, Gloucester Tower and Edinburgh Tower, and a large five-level shopping podium.

During the 1990s, Hongkong Land continued to enhance its core commercial office portfolio in Hong Kong, while beginning to look at investment opportunities in other Asian cities.

In Hong Kong, Central office space supply increased substantially in late 1990s and in 1997 the company launched the redevelopment of Swire House as a world class building in the heart of Central, now named Chater House.

In Singapore, the company began construction of One Raffles Link, an office building in the centre of the city that was an early example of sustainable construction. The building was completed in 2000.

Buildings

Commercial Buildings :
Hongkong Land is a major landlord in the Central Business Districts of Hong Kong, Singapore, Jakarta and has a presence in other Asian cities, including:

Hong Kong:

• Alexandra House
• Chater House
  Chater House
  Chater House is an office tower in Central, Hong Kong opened in 2003. It is a part of the Hongkong Land portfolio of properties. Its main tenant is JPMorgan, who have their Asia Pacific headquarters in the building...
  
  
• One, Two and Three Exchange Square
  Exchange Square (Hong Kong)
  The Exchange Square is a building complex located in Central, Hong Kong. It houses offices and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. It is served by the Central and Hong Kong stations of the MTR metro system....
  
  
• The Forum
• Jardine House
  Jardine House
  Jardine House , formerly known as Connaught Centre , is an office tower in Hong Kong. The building is located at 1 Connaught Place, Central on the Hong Kong Island. It is owned by Hongkong Land Limited, a subsidiary of Jardines. At the time of its completion in 1972, Jardine House was the tallest...
  
  
• The Landmark
  The Landmark (Hong Kong)
  The Landmark is an office and shopping development owned by Hong Kong Land in Central, Hong Kong. It is commonly known as the home of numerous prestigious international brands and the gathering place of well-heeled shoppers.-History:...
  
  
• Edinburgh Tower
• Gloucester Tower
• York House
• Prince's Building
  Prince's Building
  The Prince's Building is an office tower and shopping centre located along Statue Square in Central, Hong Kong. Tenants include KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers.The name has been used for two structures in the same area....
  
  

Macau:

• One Central Macau
• Apartments and residences to be managed by Mandarin Oriental

Singapore:

• One Raffles Link
• CityLink Mall
• One Raffles Quay
• Marina Bay Financial Centre

Jakarta:

• Wisma Metropolitan I
• Wisma Metropolitan II
• World Trade Centre I
• World Trade Centre II

Hanoi:

• Central Building
• 63 Ly Thai To

In addition, Hongkong Land has interests in three hotels, two of which are part of the mixed-use developments.


The hotels are:

• The Landmark Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong
• Mandarin Oriental, Macau
• The Concord Hotel, Kuala Lumpur

Residential Projects :
Hongkong Land has a significant residential property development business in Asia focusing on developments for sale for the high-and-luxury end of the market, through wholly owned or joint venture projects. Examples of recent residential projects completed or being developed are:


Hong Kong :

• The Serenade
• The Sail at Victoria
• Ivy on Belcher’s

Beijing :

• Central Park
• Maple Place at Beijing Riviera

Chongqing :

• Bamboo Grove
• Dan Zishi

Shenyang :

• One Capitol
• Park Life

Macau :

• One Central Residences

The Philippines :

• NorthPine Land
• Roxas Triangle Tower

Singapore :

• Marina Bay Residences
• Marina Bay Suites
• MCL Land developed residential properties include Parvis, Hillcrest Villa, Fernhill, Calrose, Metz and Waterfall Gardens.

External links

• Company Website
• Company Website on its premises in Central
• Property portfolio