Legal Updates for August 2021

A Guide to the Real Estate Industry in Asia

A keen understanding of the nature of real estate and the legal and regulatory issues related to this asset class is critical to working out the basic features of any real estate deal. The Rajah & Tann Asia’s “Guide to the Real Estate Industry in Asia” gives you a brief overview of certain key insights to the real estate industry in the ten jurisdictions across Rajah & Tann Asia’s geographical footprint, namely, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Topics covered in the Guide include the legal framework, types of real estate, ownership and tenure, taxes as well as important issues that an investor of real estate in the region should take note of.

In its second edition, we hope that this Guide will be a useful aid to investors who are navigating or looking to navigate this part of the world for their real estate investments.

A key pillar of our strength is our Rajah & Tann Asia network with offices in these ten jurisdictions, as well as dedicated desks focusing on Japan and South Asia. With the most extensive legal network in Asia, our lawyers have a tight grasp of the local culture, business practices, and language not just within their own home countries, but in the other markets in which they frequently conduct cross-border deals as well. Our depth of transactional and regulatory experience allows us to advise clients strategically and creatively, from structuring to eventual execution and implementation of the transaction.

This gives us an unparalleled edge over our competitors in presenting and pursuing solutions that are both practical and cost-effective. It provides our clients with the "home advantage" in any corporate real estate matters.

A Guide to Sustainable Financing in Southeast Asia

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a renewed realisation on how existential threats can debilitate the global economy. With this, issues affecting sustainability, climate change, social economics and governance have taken on a new priority on the agenda of governments, industries and businesses.

This renewed focus is aligned with what has been already a growing investment trend and corporate behaviour in recent years – where corporates have started to look beyond short-terms returns, and focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors for long-term sustained growth.

Adequate financial support is important to support the achievement of sustainability and ESG targets. To this end, there has been a global push for financing products that incorporate elements of environmental protection and performance-based sustainability linked targets.

In this publication, we provide an overview of these sustainable financing options across the nine jurisdictions of Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Each Country Chapter covers the policy, legal or regulatory framework supporting sustainable financing in each jurisdiction and highlights the trends, government incentives and initiatives that help shape the sustainable financing landscape in these Southeast Asia jurisdictions.