HLB appointed as Official Supervisor of PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards

BANGKOK — PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards, the region’s most exclusive and prestigious real estate awards programme, are pleased to welcome HLB, the global network of independent advisory and accounting firms, as the Official Supervisor.

Through this partnership, HLB will help strengthen the 16-year-old awards programme’s reputation as the ‘Gold Standard’ in real estate in the Asia Pacific region, boosted by the auditing firm’s global presence and expertise in the international property market.

Jules Kay, managing director of PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards & Events, said: “We are pleased to have HLB join the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards programme as our Official Supervisor. Their expertise and global reach will enable the Awards series to reach greater heights and ensure continued credibility, fairness and transparency — crucial values the Awards have been known for throughout its 16-year history.”

Marco Donzelli, Global Chief Executive Officer of HLB, said: “HLB appreciates greatly the opportunity to become the Official Supervisor of the judging process of PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards. With more than 50 years’ practice in global contexts and the pursuit of quality and integrity, HLB is confident that we bring a level of credibility to this leading awards series in the real estate sector in Asia.”

Founded in 1969, HLB serves clients through their member firms in 159 countries, with 32,839 partners and staff in 968 offices across the globe. Their services range from management consulting; financial, legal, technology, and risk advisory; global accounting and compliance services; sustainability audit and reporting; private client services; and more.

With their pro-active thinking and creative business approach, HLB’s network has dedicated the past five decades to creating value and maximising opportunities for clients in an array of industries, including real estate and construction, manufacturing, and wholesale and retail, among others.

“In part thanks to our strong global real estate expertise, we are able to share best practice, as well as add value to our clients’ local and global growth. We look forward to our collaboration with PropertyGuru, to add value to both the local and global real estate communities,” Donzelli added.

As the Official Supervisor of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards, a representative from the local HLB office will be involved in all stages of the judging process to ensure that everything and everyone abides by the standards, from reviewing completed entry forms to participating in all judges’ meetings, to joining virtual or physical site inspections, and approving the final results.

HLB’s supervisory role spans all 16 markets covered by the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards 2021 series, including Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, the Philippines, Cambodia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Maldives, India, Japan and Australia, as well the Grand Final in December when country winners from the aforementioned markets will gather to compete for more regional accolades. The Grand Final will be supervised by Paul Ashburn, HLB’s co-managing partner in Thailand, who has been part of the Asia Property Awards programme since its first gala event.

Launched in 2005, the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards has an unparalleled reputation for being credible, fair, and transparent, with an independent panel of judges in each market comprising industry experts and luminaries. The programme hosts several annual gala events in physical, virtual, or hybrid formats, welcoming hundreds of C-level executives, senior industry figures, and property seekers from around the region.

A total of 384 country and regional awards were presented to the finest developers in the region in 2020, when the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards launched its online gala series –– the first of its kind in the Asia-Pacific region. The series was viewed more than 516,000 times and reached viewers and property investors in more than 75 countries worldwide.

This year, the exciting awards gala series will premiere simultaneously on the same day on AsiaPropertyAwards.com/tv-podcast and the official channels on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube. The highlights will air on the History & Lifetime channels of the A+E Networks, the Official Cable TV Partner of the Awards, reaching even more international audiences.