PropertyGuru Thailand Real Estate Summit announces 2017 speaker line-up

Respected names in the property development, technology and finance industries will meet delegates face-to-face in Bangkok this September.

BANGKOK, Thailand - 31 August 2017: Industry experts are headed to the PropertyGuru Thailand Real Estate Summit, the premier gathering of top-level business leaders and industry experts in the Kingdom's property sector, which opens on Thursday, 14 September at the Plaza Athenée Bangkok (a Royal Meridien hotel).

The Summit is day-long forum that includes meaningful sessions for Thai real estate trends and financing options, the strength of the hospitality segment despite the market downturn, inbound investments, a case study on the future of mixed-use design, the branded residences that now define many luxury properties, iconic skylines, up-and-coming investment destinations, and the Kingdom's economic policies that may impact the property sector.

Thailand's Deputy Minister of Commerce Sontirat Sontijirawong is confirmed to deliver the half-hour keynote address, titled ‘Thailand Real Estate Outook', sharing his valuable insights on the current state of Thai's property market and where it is going.

Another respected name, the Kingdom's former Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij, will anchor the afternoon programme of the Summit with his 30-minute session called ‘Innovative Financing in Real Estate Development'. Serving currently as the chairman of the Thailand Democrat Party Policy Unit, and chairman of Thai Fintech Association, the University of Oxford alumnus Korn was also a former president and chairman of JP Morgan Securities (Thailand) in the early 2000's.

Other confirmed speakers include: Woraphong Leksakulchai (Managing Partner- Bangkok, Hughes Krupica); Jessica Cheng (CEO, Lion King Agency); Wisanu Tuntawiroon (Advisor, The National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission - NBTC); Nicholas Ho (Deputy Managing Director, hpa - Ho & Partners Architects); Frank Khan (Executive Director/Head of Residential, Knight Frank Thailand); Andrew Gulbrandson (Head of Research and Consulting, JLL Thailand); Paul Ashburn (Co-Managing Partner, BDO); and Southeast Asian hospitality sector expert Bill Barnett (Managing Director, C9 Hotelworks). 

Also joining are renowned commentators from local firms: Dr John Leslie Millar (Chief Strategic Development Officer, Ananda Development); Kipsan Beck (Managing Director, MahaNakhon); Dr. Suriya Poolvoralaks (Managing Director, Major Development); Kittipol Pramoj Na Ayudhya (Managing Director, Sammakorn Public Company Limited); Anthony McDonald (CEO, Bespoke Hotel Management Asia); Micah Tamthai (Vice-President of Real Estate, Minor International); and Dr. Pun-Arj Chairatana (Executive Director, National Innovation Agency of Thailand).

PropertyGuru Group chief business officer Lewis Ng will moderate the panel for 'Thailand's 4.0 Economic Policy - Why Technology and Innovation Needs to be the Core of Your Business', and Winston Lee, PropertyGuru's regional head of new projects, will lead the panel discussion on ‘Reaching the Right Foreign Investors'. 

Meanwhile, PropertyGuru Property Report's head of publishing Liam Aran Barnes will hold a fireside chat session on ‘How To Build an Icon of the Skyline?' with Scott Duncan, a design partner at Som - Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, while serial entrepreneur Amarit Charoenphan, CEO and co-founder of Hubba Co-Working Space and Techsauce.co, is scheduled to give a short talk on the rise of property technology, and trends in the tech and innovation space in Thailand and Southeast Asia.

More than 100 regional experts, C-level executives and senior managers from the real estate, design, finance and government sectors are expected to participate in the conference, which takes place one day before twelfth anniversary gala dinner of the PropertyGuru Thailand Property Awards 2017.

The PropertyGuru Thailand Real Estate Summit 2017 is supported by Thailand's No.1 property website DDproperty.com, the official portal partner; THAI Airways International, the official airline partner; hpa, the official breakfast and lunch sponsor; supporting associations British Chamber of Commerce Thailand, Startup Thailand, and the National Innovation Agency; and media partners Oxford Business Group, Techsauce.co, and PropertyGuru Property Report, Asia's leading luxury real estate, architecture and design publication.

The PropertyGuru Thailand Real Estate Summit is part of the PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit 2017 conference series, which debuted in Malaysia last 16 August, keynoted by Malaysian Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Lee Chee Leong and REHDA president Datuk Seri FD Iskandar bin Mohamed Mansor. After the Thailand leg, the Summit will move on to Singapore for a two-day regional conference to be held on 7-8 November at the Marina Bay Sands Expo and Convention Centre.

Speaking, sponsorship and media partnership opportunities are available. For bookings and enquiries, contact ARES@propertyguru.com or visit the official website: AsiaRealEstateSummit.com

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About PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit:

The PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit is the premier gathering of top-level business leaders and industry experts to exchange ideas, build partnerships, gain industry insights and discover the most outstanding projects in Asia. The Summit covers the biggest issues driving real estate development, investment and growth in Asia and across the world. The format is fast-paced: keynote speeches and panel discussions are interspersed with shorter talks and presentations, as well as international networking lunch and coffee breaks, with early evening cocktails to end the day.

In 2017, the PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit will feature domestic conferences in four markets: single-day events in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, and a two-day dialogue in Singapore. Held alongside the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards gala dinner, each domestic conference aims to ‘educate, innovate and inspire' more than 100 delegates, comprising the local real estate industry's established and emerging leaders. They will join thought leaders and trendsetters from around the region to refresh thinking, reset agendas and connect with peers.

For more information, please visit AsiaRealEstateSummit.com  

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Headquartered in Singapore, PropertyGuru.com.sg was launched in 2007 by two entrepreneurs. They had a vision to simplify the property search process and help renters, buyers, sellers and investors make confident property decisions - faster.

Today, it has grown from being a media company to a high-growth technology company. Beyond operating a suite of No.1 property portals and award-winning mobile apps, the Group also manages a host of industry-leading property offerings such as publications, events, awards and a project marketing technology platform - across eight countries in Asia.      

For more information, please visit www.propertyguru.com/