Shanghai, March 8- Statistics show a sharp increase of Chinese investors who went overseas to invest in real estate, stocks and bonds and other investment, with the aggregate investment exceeding US$1 trillion.

“It’s a very dynamic trend when we look back the situation of Chinese overseas investment in the past decade,” said Graham Zink, Managing Director, Knight Frank Shanghai during the exclusive interview with reporter from Eastday.

Currently, Graham serves on the Greater China Board of Directors for Knight Frank and manages over 80 staff in Shanghai across six service lines serving Central and East China.

Chinese institutional investors have dominated the market in the past, including the China Life Insurance (Overseas) purchase of the west tower of One HarbourGate, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong, for US$755m.

Photo by Fan Yicheng

Graham pointed out a new wave of Chinese investors venture offshore. Private UHNWIs, typically developers and industrialists, have been making quite a stir.

Unlike earlier investments by Chinese institutions focusing on trophy assets, these new investors dominate small to mid-cap private investments in primary and secondary locations. The US and Western Europe are key targets, said Graham.

Kuafu Properties, for example, a New-York based developer backed by a Chinese private fund, has acquired four US properties one year after entering the market, spending over $500m.

Assets in the key Western markets will continue to be targeted by Asian private investment, said Graham when talking about future opportunities, while a slow maturing of domestic markets and the growth of different methods of investing – from REITs in China, to syndicated or club-type deals that increase UHNWI exposure to the commercial real-estate market.

Recently Knight Frank signed cooperation MOU with Eastday. The two sides will cooperate in the aspects of brand promotion, information online releasing as well as offline activities.

It is worth mentioning that this is the first time Knight Frank signed a MOU with a local well-known media in mainland China.

Established in 2000, Eastday experienced dramatic growth particularly in its apps and online social media applications. Not just in developing new channels but also its commitment into investing in these new channels.

“That is in line with Knight Frank”, Graham introduced that Knight Frank has a strong presence in the Greater China property markets, with offices in HK, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Taipei and Macau, offering high-quality professional advice and solutions across a comprehensive portfolio of property services.

He is looking forward to the future cooperation between the two companies in Internet, Real Estate, Finance and Media fields.