In a statement today, the company said Ong has been mandated to spearhead KIP REIT’s business strategies, operational plans and corporate exercises to strengthen its position as a respected and professionally managed REIT.

“As the CEO, my immediate focus will be to grow our existing portfolio of retail and industrial assets as we look to acquire potential assets that are within our investment policy. In addition, I will push ahead with KIP REIT’s shift towards sustainability,” she said.

Ong, 35, was appointed as executive director of KIP REIT in 2018. She joined the KIP Group of Companies in 2012 and was appointed as group CEO in 2017. The KIP Group is involved in property development (residential, commercial, shopping malls), retail management of KIPMalls as well as hospitality (KIP Hotel).

As group CEO, she oversaw the construction, development and leasing of three malls — KIPMall Kota Warisan, KIPMall Desa Coalfields, and KIP Kuantan — under a master lease to Lotus’s.

Ong is chairman of KIP REIT’s sustainability steering committee, where she oversees the formulation and implementation of its environmental, social and governance initiatives. She also serves as deputy chairman of KIP REIT’s investment steering committee.

According to its filing with Bursa Malaysia today, she holds 200,000 units in KIP REIT and is the daughter of its managing director Ong Kook Liong.

KIP REIT was listed on Bursa Malaysia in 2017, and as of Dec 31, 2022 has a total net lettable area of 1.85 million square feet and total asset value of RM930.9 million, according to its website.

REIT is managed by KIP REIT Management. Its retail portfolio currently consists of seven community-centric neighbourhood malls, known as ‘KIPMalls’.

As part of its diversification strategy, KIP REIT has expanded to the industrial sector through the acquisition of three industrial properties located at Pulau Indah Klang, Selangor.

KIP REIT units were unchanged at 90.5 sen today, giving it a market capitalisation of RM545.7 million.