Cover Story: TS Law Group making its presence felt in KL property scene

This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on November 20, 2023 – November 26, 2023

TAN Sri David Law Tien Seng mines for fortune through his mining businesses in Australia and forges wealth through his steel businesses in Malaysia.

Nonetheless, Law is no different from any traditional businessman who believes that land is a scarce resource — something necessary for wealth creation.

Jalan Imbi, better known as Imbi Road to Kuala Lumpur’s old-timers, holds strong sentimental value for the 70-year-old self-made billionaire who was born in Raub. Law, who is founder and executive chairman of TS Law Group, has been patiently buying up plots of land, including the sites of bungalows built in the 1960s, whenever they became available for sale there.

The latest acquisition is that of a subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed Agile Group Holdings Ltd for RM310 million. The unit owns a parcel of land in Jalan U Thant, an affluent neighbourhood in the capital city.

It can perhaps be said that he has been accumulating precious stones over the decades and, now, these gems have not only appreciated in value but can be put together to form a grand jewellery piece that is a collection of gleaming landmarks in Kuala Lumpur.

Law, who is also executive deputy chairman of Main Market-listed Hiap Teck Venture Bhd, is probably among the few big, if not the largest, landowners in the bustling Bukit Bintang area, once regarded as part of the Golden Triangle in the CBD. His headquarters, TSLAW Tower, is just a stone’s throw away from the 40-acre Tun Razak Exchange (TRX). The 48-storey retail and corporate office tower was the first precious gem that Law used to begin his crafting of the jewellery piece.

“My first office was in this exact location … After so many years, we have now moved back to where we were before,” Law tells The Edge during an exclusive interview at his office on the 46th floor, which has a stunning view of southern Kuala Lumpur. The construction of the RM350 million TSLAW Tower began in late 2017 and was completed in 2021.

The office block has an occupancy rate of 80%, with global oil-and-gas firm TechnipFMCplc securing 30% of the space. TS Law Group occupies 10 storeys, and six storeys are dedicated to food and beverage (F&B) outlets.

Amid an oversupply of office space, an 80% occupancy rate for a new office block is commendable, but Law acknowledges there is pressure on rental yield.

“We own about 10 acres of freehold land between Jalan Bukit Bintang and TRX, one of the few remaining highly sought-after plots in the financial district of KL,” he says.

His plan for the next five to eight years is to roll out developments with an estimated gross development value (GDV) of RM6 billion to RM8 billion, which may include office buildings. The whole development will be integrated with elevated walkways from TRX to Bukit Bintang.

“We will build for them if there is an interested party that wants to set up its headquarters here … It will be like an en-bloc sale. But, we won’t build if there are no takers; we are aware of the current oversupply of office space,” says Law.

Knowing that gems like his are growing scarce, Law is confident of demand from price-insensitive foreign and local buyers for high-end properties. This is quite a contrarian view, as other industry players have put a brake on luxury developments.

The second jewel is the plot adjacent to TSLAW Tower and has been earmarked for a high-end project comprising luxury apartments and an international five-star hotel.

“We plan to launch a serviced apartment [which will be located behind Chinese restaurant Noble House] between 2024 and 2025. We will be partnering with an established brand to introduce a luxury residential project with a GDV of RM3 billion to RM4 billion,” Law says, explaining his master plan.

The group’s target customers are 30% locals and 70% foreigners, mainly from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and the Middle East.

“From our observation, there haven’t been many new luxury serviced residence projects in town since the pandemic. Our project can offer better prices than other luxury residential projects in Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia,” he says.

Law adds that investors could buy for their own stay, rent out their units or use them as holiday homes. He believes the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) Programme, which the government has been reviewing and improving, should bode well for such a development.

He says: “MM2H conditions should not be too strict or too lenient. If we are too strict, we might lose out to the likes of Dubai, Indonesia and Thailand because the applicants are also considering other options. We should be moderate.

“Bear in mind that an applicant usually does not come alone; there will be five to six family members coming along. Imagine the economic impact if we could attract them to choose Malaysia as their second home.”

He believes that from next year, more Chinese investors and companies, such as those in the electric vehicle, chemical and downstream industries, will be coming to Malaysia, given that the unity government has strengthened the country’s diplomatic ties with China.

“Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim visited China twice this year, while China’s vice-president [Han Zheng] recently came to Malaysia for an official visit. All these are positive signs for us,” he says.

Elsewhere in Kuala Lumpur, the group launched Skyline KL, Pudu, a seven-acre mixed-use development project with an estimated GDV of RM1.3 billion, in 2022, followed by Skyline Kuchai, a 4.8-acre apartment suite development project that has a GDV of RM1 billion, in the first quarter of this year.

The group has a land bank of about 1,000 acres spanning Bukit Bintang, Petaling Jaya, Subang, Seremban, Taman Desa and Taman Wahyu, with an estimated GDV of RM15 billion.

Law emphasises, however, that the primary focus is on two large-scale development projects — one in the TRX area; and the other, the rejuvenation of its newly acquired Ajinomoto land in Kuchai Lama.

Spicing up Ajinomoto land
Law had long been eyeing the 26-acre site of the Ajinomoto factory in Kuchai Lama, in the south of KL.

“I wanted to buy the land for more than 20 years because it is adjacent to our Skyline Kuchai project,” says Law, who wrote to Ajinomoto twice expressing his interest in the tract. “It’s unlikely you’ll find another plot as big in the KL city centre.”

On the rejuvenation of the Ajinomoto land, which is near the group’s previous headquarters before it moved back to Jalan Imbi, Law has plans for an integrated commercial development, citing Perdana Park­City Sdn Bhd’s Plaza Arkadia in Desa ParkCity and UOA Group’s Bamboo Hills in Taman Bamboo, KL, as examples.

Describing his plans for the Ajinomoto site, Law says: “Whether it’s day time or night time, you could eat, play, drink and shop there. It’s going to be an iconic attraction not just for tourists but also for locals, and it is for all age groups. It’s not just another shopping centre.

Given that the development is still in the planning stages, Law says it is too early to disclose the GDV, although he hopes to kick-start the project in 2025.

“We want to introduce the retail and commercial elements first. When the time is right, we might allocate five to six acres to build residential property. The residential element will make up not more than 20% of the whole mixed development and likely in the later stage of development. We do not want it to be too high-density.”

Law came into the spotlight when the news broke that TS Law Realty Sdn Bhd had sealed a deal to buy the East Wing of The Icon @ Jalan Tun Razak for RM226.5 million cash in December 2009 from Mah Sing Group Bhd. He was given a monthly rental guarantee of RM1.3 million for three years.

Asked whether he has immediate plans to list the property business, Law says: “If the opportunity arises, but not now. Our property business is not that big. Even if we focus only on the projects in the pipeline, they will keep us busy for at least the next 10 to 15 years.

“We are currently focusing on building a strong team and doing our job well internally. We would never say no to listing plans, but perhaps in the future.”

As TS Law Group is a private-owned entity, Law has the leeway to carry out his projects at his own pace. He will have the luxury of time to polish and cut the gems he has accumulated for the grand jewellery piece.