ASIA NEWS: Leveraging off the west

PERE: Can you explain why you are seconding INREV’s Andrea Carpenter to aid ANREV’s operations in Asia?

JS: Carpenter has a broad range of experience. As the director of professional standards and communications at INREV, she plays a pivotal role in its two cornerstone initiatives. These will also be the sort of cornerstone initiatives of our work in Asia. She has also served as interim chief executive officer so she brings experience on how to manage such an organisation. She will also act as an Asia point of contact for the INREV standard data delivery project. Her secondment will cement the co-operation between ANREV and INREV and improve knowledge and adoption of INREV’s guidelines in Asia. She will focus on research, launch the online vehicles database, develop action plan for ANREV Index including investigating current indices.

PERE: During Carpenter’s three month secondment to Asia, what does ANREV hope to achieve?

JS: During Carpenter’s three month secondment, she will work towards establishing ANREV as an important network to encourage transparency within the industry and as well as increase participation by reaching out to new members.
 
PERE: Is the secondment the first of such initiatives towards improving transparency?

JS: Her secondment is not the first and will definitely not be the last exchange between ANREV and INREV. In fact, ANREV’s research director Clara Lee spent three months in Europe last year when the two organisations first began their co-operation. The secondment allowed INREV to support and have input into ANREV’s initiatives to ensure comparability and maintain a high standard of output. As more investors emerge outside their domestic borders in Asia, there needs to be improvement in transparency

PERE: For those that don’t know can you tell us what ANREV is all about?

JS: ANREV’s primary objectives are to improve transparency and accessibility for increased liquidity, be a source of research and market information and promote sustainability and best practices in all aspects of investing across the industry.

PERE: Why should corporations become members of ANREV? What benefits do you offer to your members?

JS: The Asian non-listed property funds market is a maturing market. ANREV membership allows participants to support growth and transparency to ensure highest levels of best practice. Benefits include access to ANREV’s vehicles database and another important intangible benefit is the ability for industry players to network. In the future, ANREV also expects to add training and education initiatives for its members in Asia.

PERE: What is ANREV’s policy towards transparency? What sort of a strategy are you going to adopt towards achieving this and with respect to INREV’s Guidelines do you envisage any changes for ANREV?

JS: Transparency is an integral part of ANREV’s mission and objectives so all our activities are geared towards achieving this through research, promotion of INREV guidelines, or through ANREV’s networking opportunities. ANREV endorses INREV guidelines and has been promoting them across Asia since December 2009. Developed markets such as Australia, Singapore and Japan have been particularly receptive and the emerging markets too, recognise the benefits of industry standards and guidelines for reporting and corporate governance. Although there are regional differences, INREV Guidelines suit the market needs at this time.