Career Biography

Mark Hwang is a legal professional based in Singapore with over two decades of experience spanning government service, private practice, in-house counsel roles, business roles and executive leadership across the Asia-Pacific region. He is currently General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Aravest, a company that continues the private funds business previously operated by ARA Asset Management in Singapore, Australia, Korea, and the United States. Following the acquisition of this business by Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing in 2024, Mark’s responsibilities now include overseeing legal and compliance matters, as well as participation in the firm’s Executive Committee and Investment Committee, where he integrates legal risk management with the pursuit of commercial objectives.

Before joining Aravest, Mark held senior legal positions at ESR Group and ARA Asset Management. He was Group Head of Legal at ESR Group after its acquisition of ARA Asset Management in 2022, and previously served as Group General Counsel at ARA Asset Management and Head of Legal and Compliance for ARA Private Funds. In these roles, Mark led teams responsible for a wide range of legal work, including private funds, mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, privatisations, corporate finance, joint ventures, and dispute resolution.

Mark has been involved in a number of significant transactions, such as the merger of ARA Asset Management and ESR Group (Deal of the Year, PERE Global Awards 2021), the delisting and privatisation of Kenedix Inc. in Japan, and the acquisition of LOGOS (Deal of the Year, PERE Global Awards 2020), a logistics developer and fund management platform. Through his years in the fund and asset management industry, he has overseen the full lifecycle of numerous private funds across Asia Pacific, Europe, and the US.

Earlier in his career, Mark was Director of Legal and Business Development at Nuri Holdings, where he managed legal affairs for a diverse portfolio of businesses in sectors including financial services, real estate, hospitality, resources, chemicals, retail, and automotive. He also spent time as Head of Real Estate Investment Banking for Southeast Asia at Morgan Stanley, where he helped establish the firm’s real estate investment banking presence in the region.

Mark’s private practice experience includes roles at Paul Hastings in Hong Kong and Allen & Gledhill in Singapore. At Allen & Gledhill, he was involved in pioneering the first real estate investment trust (REIT) IPOs in Singapore and contributed to the development of compliance standards for the industry. He began his legal career as Deputy Public Prosecutor and State Counsel at the Attorney General’s Chambers in Singapore, handling criminal prosecutions and appeals.

Mark holds an LLM in Corporate & Commercial Law from University College London and an LLB (Honours) from the National University of Singapore. He is admitted as an Advocate & Solicitor in Singapore and as a Solicitor in England & Wales.