Hong Kong-listed retail real estate investment trust Link REIT has completed the acquisition of the EC Mall in the Haidian district of Beijing for RMB2,500 million, the REIT announced on 24 March.

The REIT has touted the acquisition as its first mainland China investment acquisition, signifying an important move in the company’s business diversification.

George Hongchoy, CEO of the REIT’s manager has described the acquisition as a first step towards entering a new geographical market for business.

“The residents of Haidian district have the highest per capita disposable income in Beijing and consumer retail sales in the district rank the second highest amongst the Beijing districts”, said Hongchoy. “The mall is well positioned to capitalise on the growing spending power of local residents of Zhongguancun and the greater Haidian district”, he added.

EC Mall receives an annual footfall of over eight million visitors. It has a total gross floor area of over 70,000 square metres over seven floors of retail with a mix of tenants including fashion, food and beverage and sportswear brands such as Nike, innisfree, H&M, UNIQLO, SEPHORA and Zara.

EC Mall was opened in 2009. The property currently enjoys an occupancy rate of approximately 99%.

Units of Link REIT are currently listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange at SGD48.