TRX attracts global interest
KUALA LUMPUR: Tun Razak Exchange (TRX), the swanky new financial address, here, is being sought after by international financial industry players who are looking “to take position”.
Two reputable European firms would be signing deals with TRX City Sdn Bhd for lease and ownership of office space by year-end, said its chief executive officer Datuk Azmar Talib.
TRX City, the master developer of the international financial hub project, has embarked on a marketing drive abroad.
The company’s foray into the United Kingdom over a fortnight ago had been an eye-opener and was “beyond our expectations”, said Azmar when met at a trade and investment forum in London recently.
“Despite the market situation and recent noise, international financial players believe in what we are doing and want to take position in Kuala Lumpur… these big boys want the best place to do business.
“There has been a lot of interest from multinational corporations in Europe and elsewhere in the world, including China and the United States.”
Despite challenges in the global financial market, there has been a good mix of interest from both international and local investors in the TRX.
The likes of Lend Lease of Australia and Mulia Group of Indonesia as well as local players such as Affin Bank, WCT Bhd and Tabung Haji have rubber stamped their presence there.
The project, which is estimated to be completed between 2025 and 2030, will encompass Grade A investment office space underpinned by world-class residential, hospitality, retail, leisure and culture offerings.
According to the master plan, the 29ha site will house 26 buildings and more than 21 million sq ft of gross floor area spread across office, residential, hotel, retail, food and beverage and cultural offerings.
“Work in the first phase of TRX has been going on smoothly, including the first building (by an international financial player) that will be completed in 2018 as scheduled,” said Azmar.
He said there were 25 development plots in TRX and 60 per cent had been commercialised.
On TRX’s marketing campaign, Azmar said the focus was on the low-hanging fruit by reaching out to financial institutions that were keen to expand their operations in this part of the world through a representative or branch office.
His team is also reaching out to ancillary services providers to create a clustering effect that will improve business efficiency.
Incentives are also being extended to the potential customers.
He said the company was also helping to market the Signature Tower, the tallest building in TRX that is being built by Mulia Group. “
Also, together with the government and Bank Negara Malaysia, we will go on a drive to promote Islamic finance and the Asean market,” Azmar added.
TRX City Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Datuk Azmar Talib says there has been a lot of interest in Tun Razak Exchange from multinational corporations in Europe and elsewhere in the world.