Kelvin Fong takes the helm of PropNex as CEO, Ismail Gafoor remains Executive Chairman
The duties of deputy CEO will be distributed amongst 6 vital forerunners, namely Eddie Lim, senior vice-president and head company officer; Marcus Luah, director of business growth; Bobby Sng, head of development leadership; Ken Ng, director of development business; Benjamin Tan, head of business strategy; and Cijay Tew, head of training and development. PropNex says that there are no strategies to fill the deputy CEO duty currently.
The endowment fund will certainly aid to anchor a PropNex Foundation, collectively established by Gafoor and PropNex co-founder Alan Lim, who intend to grow the fund to $25 million over the next ten years. Returns from the structure’s investment will certainly go towards programmes that support underprivileged students and educational initiatives.
Fong joined PropNex in 2002 and was assigned an executive head in June 2018 and eventually promoted to deputy CEO in August 2023. “I’ve had the privilege of growing alongside PropNex for over two decades, and I’m deeply dedicated to preserving the culture that has actually made us who we are,” says Fong.
Gafoor moves back after top PropNex Real estate to become a leading real estate firm in Singapore. Throughout his period, he looked after the firm’s listing on the Singapore Exchange in July 2018, as well as the company’s regional development over the last few years. At present, PropNex has already developed a market presence in Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia and Australia. It has a consolidated network of more than 16,000 real estate agents.
The newly developed PropNex Foundation was officially launched at a company-wide event at Marina Bay Sands on July 15, graced by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who looked after the initial disbursement of $254,000 to 160 students.
Other leadership appointments at PropNex were introduced in March. Dominic Lee who was managing the deluxe team for the past ten years, is head of financial investment sales. Concurrently, Jason Tan represented chief technique specialist. He was the advisory associate branch district director at PropNex, leading a group of over 1,000 sales representatives. Tan also acted as a tech expert on PropNex’s proprietary apps: Investment Suite and Business Suite.
Lastly, Gafoor released a self-enrichment book titled I Am Not Good Enough, which illustrates his personal life journey, building up PropNex and his leadership values. Profits from the sale of the 27-chapter book are going to be contributed to The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund. The book is going to be marketed from July 16.
The leadership transition comes as PropNex celebrates its 25th anniversary, noting the occasion with numerous area initiatives and the establishment of a $10 million endowment fund.
He adds that as CEO, his attention is going to be on encouraging PropNex’s more than 13,000 sales force in Singapore, innovating its services, and improving operational effectiveness. Its total salesperson headcount in Singapore translates to about 35% of the market share.
“PropNex has consistently displayed that still as we remain to expand our sales force in Singapore and in the region, we have actually prevented functional sluggishness and concentrated on increasing the overall performance of our brokers,” says Gafoor, mentioning internal figures that suggest deals by PropNex agents made up approximately 64% of all resale HDB, private residential new launches, and resale condo purchases in Singapore last year.
In a press event on July 15 revealing the management shift and other business efforts, Gafoor said that the division of the functions of executive chairman and CEO improves the company’s general company administration by formalising the branch of oversight and management.
PropNex also revealed a $6 million payment to the Neighborhood Chest over a 12-month duration, the largest single contribution to the charity in its history. The amount was raised through voluntary promises of a part of sales payments by PropNex agents, in addition to team and administration. The local agency authorized a memorandum of understanding with Community Chest, promising to give away $1.5 million every year from 2025 to 2027.
Mainboard-listed realty agency PropNex has already declared that Kelvin Fong will take the business as its brand-new CEO, stepping up from his prior job as deputy CEO. Outgoing Chief Executive Officer Ismail Gafoor, who co-founded the homegrown agency 25 years ago, will remain as the business’s executive chairman. He will continue to be actively involved in directing the business’s tactical path, stakeholder involvement, and Board management.
