Link Real Estate Investment Trust agreed on Tuesday to buy a 50.1% stake in Eastpoint Mall, a suburban shopping center in eastern Singapore, from Income Insurance for S$239.5 million, the Hong Kong-listed trust's manager said.

Income Insurance will keep the remaining 49.9%, and Link will take over as the mall's asset manager and property manager, according to Link's statement. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027. Link said it will pay with internal resources and debt facilities.

For investors in Asia, the deal shows the direction of travel at one of the region's biggest listed landlords. Link has spent the past several months selling buildings it calls non-core, mainly offices, while adding to the community retail business it regards as its core strength across Asia Pacific.

What Link is paying for Eastpoint Mall

Eastpoint Mall is directly connected to Simei MRT station on the East-West Line and has about 214,000 square feet of net lettable area, according to Link. At S$239.5 million for 50.1%, the price implies a value of roughly S$478 million for the whole property, or about S$2,230 per square foot of lettable space, based on Capital Times calculations from the disclosed figures. Neither party gave a valuation or yield.

The two owners plan a phased asset enhancement program, with works expected to start in 2027. The mall will stay open during the refurbishment, Link said.

Once the deal closes, Link will manage three retail properties in Singapore: Eastpoint Mall, Jurong Point and AMK Hub. It manages AMK Hub under an agreement with Mercatus Co-operative, which still owns that mall, according to Mingtiandi.

John Saunders, Link's executive director and chief investment officer, said the company remains primarily focused on selling non-core assets, but described Eastpoint as a "compelling and capital efficient investment." Taking a majority stake rather than the whole building keeps Link's capital outlay to about half of the implied property value while giving it control of management.

Why Income Insurance is selling half, not all

For Income Insurance, the sale is a capital-recycling move. The insurer appointed CapitaLand Investment in April 2026 to manage its Singapore property portfolio, according to Mingtiandi, and CapitaLand Investment, acting as its real estate investment manager, recommended the Eastpoint transaction, AASTOCKS reported.

The sale optimizes the insurer's property portfolio in line with its core return objectives and long-term sustainability goals, according to The Standard. Its chief investment officer, David Chua, said Income Insurance will work with Link to support the rejuvenation of the mall and its surrounding community.

With a specialist operator buying control and the insurer staying in, the cost of the refurbishment will be shared between two owners.

Link's broader asset recycling

The Eastpoint purchase follows two large disposals by Link this year. On Oct. 30, Link agreed to sell its entire interest in 700 Nathan Road in Mong Kok, Hong Kong, also known as T.O.P This is Our Place, for HK$2.3 billion, well below the HK$5.91 billion it paid in 2016. It will keep providing asset management services for the property after completion, and said net proceeds may go to unit buybacks, working capital or investment in its core portfolio. Capital Times covered that sale when it was announced.

In July, Link agreed to sell a 50% stake in 100 Market Street, an office building in Sydney's central business district, to Aware Real Estate for about A$226 million. As with Mong Kok, Link kept a management role, and it said proceeds would fund unit buybacks and reinvestment in its core Asia Pacific retail portfolio.

The pattern in all three deals is the same: Link sells or shares ownership of office-heavy assets while keeping fee income from managing them, and puts money into suburban malls where it can run the property itself.

For Singapore, the deal gives the Hong Kong-listed manager a mall in the east of the island to go with Jurong Point in the west and AMK Hub in Ang Mo Kio.

The next marker for investors is completion in the first quarter of 2027, when Link takes over management, followed by details of the refurbishment plan and its cost, which neither party has disclosed.