Two-day PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit 2018 to be hosted in Bangkok, first speakers named

Empowering exchange on disruption, digital innovation, smart cities and buildings, automation, blockchain, fintech and proptech

PropertyGuru, Asia’s foremost online property company, announces the return of its annual technology and innovation conference series ‘where Asia’s leaders and innovators meet’, the PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit, to be held on 8-9 November 2018 at The Athenee Hotel, Bangkok.

Renowned architect Ron Bakker of PLP is set to attend as keynote speaker on Day 2 to discuss ‘The Edge’ in Amsterdam and how it became known as the world’s most sustainable and smartest building.

In addition, Ani Bhalekar, the head of Accenture’s Internet of Things and Mobile Practices for ASEAN division, will speak about ‘Tech for the future: How to masterplan your digital strategy’.

Last year’s Day 2 chairperson Sigrid Zialcita, managing director for Asia Pacific research at Cushman and Wakefield, is also confirmed to return to the conference stage to give a short talk on ‘Smart buildings: How to make your asset competitive with Intelligent Facilities Management’.

Meanwhile, Anthony Arundell, director of Smart Cities and Sustainability for One Bangkok, a new mixed-use development in the Thai capital, joins the session ‘Big data, big profits: How to use Big Data to take your business from good to great’ as an expert panellist.

The 2018 PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit is the premier gathering of top-level business leaders and decision-makers to exchange ideas, build partnerships, gain industry insights, and discover the best industry practices in Asia.

Topics covered include the biggest issues that affect the region’s rapidly evolving real estate industries: PropTech (property technology), Internet of Things, using big data to grow a tech business, planning and development of smart cities, FinTech (financial technology), and blockchain.

Last year, the Asia Real Estate Summit series welcomed more than 500 delegates and members of the press, and 60 expert speakers and thought leaders, exploring key topics such as the history and future of PropTech, advent of FinTech, impact of China’s Belt and Road initiative, women in real estate and construction, and insights on the region’s evolving property sector.

Held across three cities – Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Singapore – the 2017 Summit series was joined by decision-makers and supported by top global brands such as Kohler, THAI Airways, Regus, Techsauce, and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

Previous keynote speakers and expert speakers at the Summit include:

• Dr. Liu Thai Ker, Singapore’s former master architect-planner; chair, Centre for Livable Cities
• Shailesh Rao, board director, JLL; former VP, Twitter; former managing director, Google India
• Korn Chatikavanij, Thailand’s former Finance Minister; chair, Thai Fintech Association
• YB Dato’ Lee Chee Leong, Deputy Finance Minister, Ministry of Finance Malaysia
• Tom Miller, journalist and author; senior analyst, Gavekal Research
• Rafiq Jumabhoy, executive chairman, Orkney Investments
• Datuk Seri FD Iskandar bin Mohamed Mansor, President, REHDA
• Dexter See, managing director, ASEAN, RICS
• Jack FitzGerald, founder, DisruptProperty.com

A high-level conference that aims to ‘educate, innovate and inspire’, the Asia Real Estate Summit’s format is fast-paced: keynote speeches and panel discussions are interspersed with shorter talks and presentations, as well as international networking lunch and coffee breaks, and breakout sessions, with early evening cocktails to end the day.

PropertyGuru Group CEO Hari Krishnan recently travelled to Bangkok to discuss PropertyGuru’s ten-year journey to becoming one of Asia’s high-growth tech companies. Speaking to local and regional press, Krishnan introduced the PropertyGuru Tech Innovation Award – the highlight of this year’s Summit – to recognise a technology start-up that can impact the Asian real estate sector.

“Our annual Asia Real Estate Summit focuses on proptech and big data, showcasing the latest within the industry. Within our industry, we have a lot of sectors to consider, from stakeholders to marketing and developers who are all at different stages of understanding and using the technology on offer,” he said.

“It is crucial that we have a cohesive understanding of where the industry is heading and what technology will best serve us. It’s probably why we are so far behind as it very hard to inform and collectively move forward.”

Sponsorship and media partnership opportunities for the Asia Real Estate Summit are available.

For enquiries, contact [email protected] or visit the official website: AsiaRealEstateSummit.com