CapitaLand appoints Lim Ming Yan as COO

Ming Yan will lead several key projects which will include special major projects and projects that require coordination across business units at corporate level.

According to CapitaLand, Lim Ming Yan will be reporting to Liew Mun Leong, President and CEO of CapitaLand Group.

Ming Yan will drive the Group's talent management programmes to build a talent pipeline that supports its growth strategy.

Ming Yan will continue in his role as CEO, The Ascott Limited, supported by his respective regional managing directors and corporate officers. He remains Deputy Chairman of the CapitaLand China Executive Committee (CCEC) and a member of the CapitaLand Vietnam Executive Committee (CVEC). Liew Mun Leong is Chairman of both CCEC and CVEC.

Liew Mun Leong, President and CEO of CapitaLand Group, said: “Ming Yan’s appointment as COO is a timely one. It is part of an ongoing process to build our top leadership and management bench strength. Two years ago, in 2009, I asked Ming Yan to return to Singapore to helm the Ascott serviced residence business, and to strengthen the team at corporate headquarters as a member of the Office of the President. He was CEO of CapitaLand China Holdings for nine years. China was a difficult market for the Group with many challenges. He successfully built and expanded CapitaLand’s real estate businesses, established a strong reputation for CapitaLand as a leading foreign real estate developer in China, and grew Raffles City into a well-recognised signature brand. To sustain our growth objectives over the next decade, we need to strengthen collaborations and coordination between our strategic business units and drive the talent management programmes across the Group. With his vast international and operational experience, Ming Yan will play an active role in implementing these goals.”

Mr Liew added: “Today, together with the rest of the management team, we have built strong foundations for a long lasting company with an international footprint. As we move into our next 10 years of expansion, we will focus to further build our capital and human resources in the core and designated new markets. We have strong corporate C-suite officers with Ming Yan as COO, Jennie Chua as Chief Corporate Officer, Olivier Lim as Group Chief Financial Officer and Wen Khai Meng as Chief Investment Officer. Given our healthy balance sheet and strong management team, we are ready to actively pursue further investment opportunities to lay an even firmer foundation for future, sustainable growth particularly in the fast growing Asia Pacific region.”

In his present role as CEO of Ascott, Ming Yan’s focus has been on transforming Ascott into a real estate company with a global footprint in the hospitality sector and to realise Ascott’s potential for portfolio gains. Ming Yan has a proven track record of successfully operating and implementing projects in China, India, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe. As COO of CapitaLand Limited, he will now bring this experience to focus on operational management across the Group’s business units, besides driving its talent management programmes. He will also continue his current corporate roles of overseeing the information technology (IT) function and the Operations Compliance Unit (OCU).

Ming Yan, 48, was conferred the prestigious Magnolia Award by the Shanghai Municipal Government in 2003 and 2005 for his significant contributions to Shanghai. He was named Outstanding Chief Executive (Overseas) at the Singapore Business Awards in 2006. Ming Yan graduated from the University of Birmingham, UK, with a Bachelor of Science (First Class Honours) in Mechanical Engineering and Economics.