Last year, Link Asset Management was nominated for several prizes at the IR Magazine Awards – China 2021, ultimately winning for best annual report by a large cap.
In this video interview, Eric Yau, chief strategy officer at the real estate investment trust manager, describes how the company approaches investor relations, the biggest IR challenges of the last two years and what lessons he would pass on to IR professionals about building strong relationships with the market.
The IR team at Link is small for the company’s size – just four people – but they ‘wave their magic wand’ and do wonders, says Yau. They manage the interim and annual reports, the results announcements, investor presentation slides, investor days at least twice a year, conferences, roadshows and ‘countless’ requests for meetings, he explains.
During the pandemic, the IR team became far more savvy at online engagement and video editing to keep up communications with the market, says Yau, although he acknowledges that it’s hard to tell the story of assets like offices and shopping centers without actually visiting them. ‘No matter how well we edit the videos, nothing can replace being physically there to feel the hustle and bustle,’ he concedes.
In terms of advice for IROs, Yau says companies need to communicate openly and directly with the market regardless of the circumstances. He recalls a time when Link attended an investment conference during a downturn, and an investor said, ‘How nice of you to come’ – as all the meetings with peer companies had been canceled.
‘On good days and bad days, we’ll come and see you,’ says Yau. ‘And that is so appreciated.’
