Keppel Land Ltd. and BDO Unibank Inc., a member of the SM Group, marked the grand opening yesterday of the office and retail mixed-use development, The Podium, at a ceremony in Manila.
Keppel Philippines Properties, a subsidiary of Keppel Land, holds a 40 percent stake in The Podium, while BDO and an associate company hold the remaining stakes.
The guest of honor was Singapore President Halimah Yacob, who was accompanied by Mohamed Abdullah Alhabshee; Indranee Rajah, minister, Prime Minister’s Office, second minister for finance and second minister for education; Koh Poh Koon, senior minister of state, ministry of trade and industry; Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, Tourism Undersecretary Benito Bengzon Jr., Mandaluyong Mayor Carmelita Aguilar Abalos and senior officials from Singapore and the Philippines.
Senior management from the Keppel Group were led by Lee Boon Yang, chairman of Keppel Corp.; Loh Chin Hua, CEO of Keppel Corp. and Tan Swee Yiow, CEO of Keppel Land, as well as Teresita Sy-Coson, chairperson of BDO; Hans Sy, chairman of the executive committee of SM Prime Holdings and Nestor Tan, president and CEO of BDO, were also present.
Developed in phases, Phase One of The Podium comprises The Podium retail mall, which was opened in 2002. Phase Two retail mall commenced operations in 2017. Construction of The Podium West Tower started in 2015 and was completed in May 2019. The total net leasable area of The Podium development is about 140,000 sqm, comprising about 50,000 sqm of retail space and about 90,000 sqm of office space.
The Podium has a 2,000 sm garden wall, the largest vertical green wall in the country with over 6,500 plants, which provides a green lung to the property’s environment. In recognition of its sustainable features, The Podium was awarded the LEED Gold Mark (core and shell) pre-certification by the US Green Building Council, and is the first building in the Philippines to receive the provisional Green Mark Gold Award by the Building and Construction Authority of Singapore.
In conjunction with the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Singapore and the Philippines, Enterprise Singapore is staging Singaporium, an exclusive lifestyle and food pop-up fair, at the atrium of The Podium retail Mall from Sept. 6 to 15. The fair will showcase 17 Singaporean brands in the fashion, food and lifestyle sectors.