APREA Philippines Conference

Sigrid is the Chief Executive Officer of Asia Pacific Real Assets Association (APREA). Based in Singapore, she is responsible for overseeing the strategic direction, initiatives and operations of the association across Asia Pacific. Under her leadership, APREA repositioned to an industry trade group focusing on real estate and infrastructure.

Sigrid joined APREA’s executive team in January 2019.

Prior to APREA, she served as Managing Director of Asia Pacific Research and Advisory Services of Cushman & Wakefield (C&W) from 2010 through 2018, where she was responsible for research, thought leadership, strategy formulation and client management.  Before relocating to Singapore, she was based in Washington, D.C. and led C&W’s U.S. research group in the Mid-Atlantic region, overseeing all aspects of market research activities in the Washington, DC; Virginia; Suburban Maryland, Baltimore; and Philadelphia areas. Prior to joining C&W, Sigrid served as a Senior Economist for the National Association of Realtors (NAR). In that position, she developed NAR’s office, warehouse, retail, multi-family housing, and international research programs.

A recognized expert in global economic, public policy and real estate issues, Sigrid is a frequent speaker at industry events.  Her commentary on commercial and residential real estate markets is also regularly featured in a wide array of global publications, including the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Bloomberg, New York Times and Reuters. Additionally, she has made several television appearances on financial networks and radio such as CNBC, Bloomberg, CNN, National Public Radio and Channel News Asia.

Sigrid holds a Master of Business Administration from Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management and a Master’s degree in Economics from Pennsylvania State University. She is a member of several civic groups including the Rotary Club of Raffles City in Singapore, where she has served in various leadership positions, and serves in the Executive Committee of the Crohn’s & Colitis Society of Singapore.

Jericho P. Go, 53, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of RL Commercial REIT, Inc. He also serves as the Senior Vice President and Business Unit General Manager of Robinsons Offices in Robinsons Land Corporation. He is concurrently the President and Chief Executive Officer of Robinsons DoubleDragon Corp. and the Chairman and President of Robinsons Equitable Tower Condominium Corporation, Robinsons Summit Center Condominium Corporation and Galleria Corporate Center Condominium Corporation. He has over 30 years of experience in the field of real estate and was responsible for filing and registering the Philippines' very first IT park with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) in 1997. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Development Studies from the University of the Philippines and graduated Magna Cum Laude and Class Salutatorian in 1993.

Jose Gutierrez is Director for Business Development at The Ascott Limited Philippines. He is responsible for driving the sustainable growth of Ascott’s portfolio of hotels, resorts, serviced residences and branded residences.

Prior to this role, he served as Partnership Growth Director at International Workplace Group (IWG), where he led the expansion of Regus, Spaces and HQ serviced office brands.

For nearly a decade, Jose held various roles with the real estate brokerage and advisory firms Leechiu Property Consultants and JLL. In this time, he played a key part in transacting several large-scale acquisitions, leases, and disposals for clients across industries.

Jose holds a degree in Psychology from De La Salle University, and a Master of Science from National University of Singapore (NUS)’s College of Design and Engineering.

Juan Fabian M. Guzom is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of CountryWide Builders Inc., a leading real estate development company in the Philippines. He is currently leading the development of both vertical and horizontal housing projects across Bulacan, Las Navas (Northern Samar), Zambales, Occidental Mindoro, Pangasinan, La Union, Western Samar, Jala-Jala (Rizal), La Paz (Tarlac), Burgos (Ilocos Norte), Angono Rizal, and Nueva Ecija. He also leads projects under the proposed project of the National Government Housing Flagship Project of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., Expanded 4PH Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino Program for Mid-Rise, 4-, 9-, and 10-Storey Condominium and Socialized Housing (House & Lot). In addition, CountryWide Builders Inc. is an accredited developer of the Pag-IBIG Fund (HDMF) and Metrobank and also a contractor of the National Housing Authority (NHA). 

Prior to leading CountryWide Builders Inc., Mr. Guzom held key positions in banking, retail management, financial services, and business operations both in the Philippines and the United States. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Commerce with a major in Finance, a Master in Business Administration with a major in Finance, and a Master in Public Administration, equipping him with a strong foundation in business leadership and public service.

Monica Lorenzana Trajano brings over 25 years of expertise in business development, spanning both local and international developers. Her
extensive experience encompasses land acquisition, project development, master planning, and residential operations. Throughout her career, Monica has been at the forefront of driving growth strategies and delivering operational excellence, notably through her leadership roles at AboitizLand and Century NULIV at Century Properties Group.

In her current role as Vice President and the Commercial Strategy and Residential Business Unit Head at Aboitiz Economic Estates | Aboitiz Land, Monica leads transformative initiatives to attract global and local businesses to the Economic Estates. Her strategic vision and leadership not only amplify the estates' value but also contribute significantly to the broader Aboitiz Group ecosystem.

Monica holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Ateneo De Manila University and has further honed her expertise through a real estate program at the University of California, Los Angeles. Her commitment to excellence and innovation continues to shape her impactful career in the real estate and infrastructure sectors.

Sheryll P. Verano is Executive Vice President and Head of Strategic Funding & Investments, Corporate Planning and Investor Relations for Arthaland Corporation, a real estate development company listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange. 

She is a finance professional with over 25 years experience in financial advisory, debt and equity capital raising, debt restructuring and mergers and acquisitions. Prior to joining Arthaland, she was Associate Director in American Orient Capital Partners (Philippines) and was with the Global Corporate Finance group of SGV and Co. She received her CFA Charter in 2006 and was one of the topnotchers in the 1999 CPA Board Exams. She graduated cum laude from the University of the Philippines with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and Accountancy. 

Jonathan Umali, with 30 years of experience in investment and asset management in Asia, joined ARCH Capital in 2006. Serving on the firm’s Investment Committee, he played a key role in expanding its investment footprint and establishing a strong local presence across the region, covering diverse markets and strategies such as opportunistic, value-add, and core/core+ investments.

Before joining ARCH Capital, Jonathan held senior positions at Ayala Land in the Philippines and completed international postings in Singapore and San Francisco. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Engineering with a minor in Chemical Engineering from De La Salle University, an MBA from the Asian Institute of Management – Columbia Business School joint program, and attended post-graduate programs at the Harvard School of Design.

Rick Santos is the Chairman, CEO and Founder of Santos Knight Frank (an affiliate of Knight Frank, the largest privately owned global real estate consultancy, with more than 500 offices in 60 countries across the globe including a strategically important partnership with Cresa in the United States).

Rick was born in the Philippines (his father is from Zamboanga) and raised in San Marino, California, USA. His education covered UC Berkeley, the London School of Economics and Oxford University. A post graduate thesis on the “Spatial Implications of Information Technology on Office Location Theory” gave him his passion for the real estate sector and in particular the global impact of the outsourcing revolution.

Rick established the CBRE business in Manila in 1994 as the country’s first fully integrated real estate services firm. In 2017, he established a long-term partnership with Knight Frank and rebranded his 1,400-strong organization as “Santos Knight Frank”. The business today consists of 11 specialist teams focusing on real estate management, transactions, and consultancy. Rick was instrumental in the growth of the Business Process Outsourcing sector, pioneering the entry of many multinational BPO and offshoring companies into the country. Through Santos Knight Frank, he and the team have advised an extensive client base spanning Fortune 500 corporations, institutional investors, private clients, and the broader Knight Frank international investor network – bridging global capital and occupier relationships to bear across the Philippine market.

He is also an advocate of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) as a way of democratizing real estate, having supported the passing of the REIT law in the Philippines.

Martin Siah is Singapore Country Executive, Head of Southeast Asia Global Corporate and Investment Banking, and Head of Asia Pacific Real Estate, Gaming and Leisure at Bank of America.

Prior to joining Bank of America, Martin was Head of Greater China and Southeast Asia Commercial Real Estate and led the Commercial Real Estate Equity and Advisory franchise at Standard Chartered Bank. Before Standard Chartered Bank, Martin was Head of Southeast Asia Real Estate Investment Banking and Corporate Finance at UBS Investment Bank.

Martin is a board member of the Capital Markets and Financial Advisory Services (CMFAS) Examinations Board in Singapore. He holds a Master of Philosophy in Finance from Cambridge University. He is a Malaysian Commonwealth Scholar, a Fellow of the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust, and the Institute of Banking and Finance Singapore Fellow in Corporate Finance. He was recognized as the Best Investment Banker in Singapore by FinanceAsia in 2023.

Christian held positions at UBS, Paribas Asia Equity, W.I. Carr Far East Limited and Yamaichi Bank (Switzerland) with almost 30 years of Asian equity experience before co-founding B&I Capital. Christian was involved in many of the first transactions in the Asian REIT market as an Asian Real Estate specialist at UBS. Currently, Christian is responsible for running B&I Capital’s Singapore research office. Christian Bernasconi graduated with BA in Political Economy of Industrial Societies from UC Berkeley. He also holds a rotating board membership with Charles Isaac.