Invista hires Asia team

Mollie Lau, AIG Real Estate’s former primary deal-sourcer in Asia, is among three people hired by UK-based Invista Real Estate Investment Management to bolster its new Asia business


Invista Real Estate Investment Management has beefed up its fledgling Asia business with three new senior appointments.

The UK-based property fund manager, which started up local operations in Asia last year, has hired Mollie Lau, Kelvin Chow, and Marcus Woodger, it said today.

Lau, who joins as director of real estate, was previously at AIG Global Real Estate for 14 years. She oversaw real estate investment activities in AIG’s Asia business, which is reportedly being sold by the US insurance giant.     

Chow joins as director of fund accounting in Asia and Marcus Woodger as legal, risk and compliance director.

Hugo Vere, head of Asian funds at Invista, said in a statement the firm wanted to grow its “footprint” across the region further. 

The firm invests in Asia markets via the Invista International Fund.

Last year it announced a deal to take over a fund management platform in Asia from Australia’s Babcock & Brown. It simultaneously purchased Babcock & Brown’s stake in its sole Asian real estate fund, the Asian Big Orange Self Storage Fund through the International Fund, for £12.95 million ($19.3 million; €14.3 million).

At the time, Invista said it would expand its Asia network to offices in Hong Kong and Singapore.