Dutch property company ECC Group is setting up a new £250m investment division to expand further into South East Asia through developing two shopping malls in Vietnam and Thailand.

The new arm of ECC Group’s ECC Invest arm – ECC Retail Investment Holding – will have $250m (£178m) of equity to help finance the developments.

ECC has formed a joint venture with Guocoland Vietnam to develop Promenada @ Canary in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – a 82,000 sq m (883,000 sq ft) retail and entertainment complex.

The joint venture will 80% owned by ECC Group and ECC says the shopping centre represents a $100m (£71m) investment.

ECC Group will also develop Promenada Chiang Mai in Chiang Mai, Thailand, a 75,000 sq m (807,000 sq ft) retail centre. ECC said the Thailand project was an $88.5m (£63m) investment.