In order to solidify and boost its market presence overseas, SM Prime Holdings is now looking to put the assets owned by its Hong Kong based property under Real Estate Investment Trust in China.

The move is being viewed as an alternative to a major offshore public listing, something that the country's largest mall operator has not ruled out yet.

"The [company's plan] in China is that once we get a good number of malls and the condition is still good, we can either do an initial public offering (IPO) or a REIT offering. In China, if you do an IPO or REIT, you can sell as high as 25 times of your capital. [Here in the Philippines,] it is only 14 or 15 times. So the upside potential in China is huge", said Jose T. Sio, Chief Financial Officer of SM Investments, while asserting that the plans would probably be put into effective over the coming 5 years, once the firm has established at least
8-10 malls successfully across China.

Currently, the SM Group owns three shopping malls across China, and has a target to add 1 more with each passing year.

REIT is a "publicly listed corporation" which works by investing in income generating real estate assets, and in June, the Chinese Government was reportedly considering introducing the concept. The scheme was conceptualized in the US during the 1960s, and has gained much popularity in Australia, Germany, Hong Kong, and various other world countries.