HONG KONG, Nov. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- UBM announces that it has acquired 65% equity share in Eco Exhibitions Sdn Bhd which owns Greenbuild Asia to develop the fair and to accelerate UBM's ASEAN strategies in Southeast Asia and its leading position in Malaysia.

(Logo: http://www.prnasia.com/sa/2010/04/19/20100419602891.jpg )

Greenbuild Asia is Southeast Asia's biggest event for sustainable building, design and construction. In February 2012, the exhibition in Kuala Lumpur welcomed over 12,000 trade buyers and 98 exhibiting companies from across the region. In 2013, the exhibition will be held from 17 - 19 September and will move to a larger exhibition venue at the Putra World Trade Centre to accommodate the increasing demand for space. Andrew Siow, founder and owner of Greenbuild Asia, will remain as a partner and also Managing Director of the company.

UBM Asia has been actively expanding its business in Malaysia these two years. It acquired in 2011 from AMB Exhibitions Sdn Bhd its trade exhibitions related to water, livestock, energy, and mechanical/electrical industries in Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines. Of these, the two largest shows are AsiaWater and ASEAN M&E Expo, both in Kuala Lumpur.

UBM acquired the Malaysian International Furniture Fair (MIFF), Malaysia's largest exhibition held in Kuala Lumpur and the largest furniture exhibition in Southeast Asia this February. With this acquisition, UBM Asia became the largest exhibition organiser in Malaysia. UBM Asia has since then launched IFSEC Southeast Asia, Rail Asia Exhibition & Conference and EcoBuild Southeast Asia in Malaysia; CPhI South East Asia and Concrete Show South East Asia in Indonesia; Singapore Jewellery & Gem Fair in Singapore; and SATTE Indonesia in Bali as part of its ASEAN development.

Showcasing the full range of properties, services, materials, equipment and construction technology dedicated to sustainable buildings, Greenbuild Asia also creates strong synergies with UBM's Ecobuild brand. Held at London's ExCeL, Ecobuild is the world's leading event for sustainable design, construction and the built environment. The 2012 event in March brought together more than 57,000 industry professionals who explored the products, services and innovations from over 1,500 exhibitors. This established brand has also been geo-adapted to Asia, in India and China.

Jime Essink, President & Chief Executive Officer of UBM Asia said:

"Southeast Asia is a very important market to UBM and to our customers. Together with our offices in Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, UBM Asia provides a unique and extensive network across the ASEAN.  We currently have 30 exhibitions in this region for a wide range of sectors to facilitate our customers in exploring the ASEAN markets which will become one big market in 2015. We look forward to having the tremendous contribution from Andrew and his team to further develop the successful Greenbuild Asia."

Notes to Editors

1. About UBM Asia (www.ubmasia.com)
Owned by UBM plc listed on the London Stock Exchange, UBM Asia operates in 19 market sectors with headquarters in Hong Kong and subsidiary companies across Asia, including UBM China in Shanghai, Hangzhou, Guangzhou and Beijing. We have over 240 products including trade fairs, conferences, trade publications, B2B/B2C portals and virtual event services. As Asia's leading exhibition organiser and the biggest commercial organiser in China, India and Malaysia, we stage the leading events of their kind across the region. Our 200 events, 24 publications and 16 vertical portals serve over 1,000,000 quality exhibitors, visitors, conference delegates, advertisers and subscribers from all over the world with high value face-to-face business-matching events, quality and instant market news and industry trends, and round-the-clock online trading networks and sourcing platforms. We have over 1,100 staff in 21 major cities across Asia, stretching from Japan to Turkey.

2. About UBM plc (www.ubm.com)
UBM plc is a leading global business media company. We inform markets and bring the world's buyers and sellers together at events, online, in print and provide them with the information they need to do business successfully. Our 6,500 staff in more than 30 countries are organised into specialist teams which serve commercial and professional communities, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently.

For more information, go to www.ubm.com; follow us on Twitter at @UBM_plc to get the latest UBM news.

For press enquiries, please contact:
Jennifer Law, Director of Corporate Marketing & Communications, UBM Asia
Tel: +852 2516 1691
Fax: +852 3749 7342
Email: Jennifer.Law@ubm.com

SOURCE UBM Asia