Join Us
Back to Leadership

Lu Yao

Managing Director – Singapore
Download high resolution photos
“My commitment is to this dynamic and diverse team. We will focus on deepening the trust we have built with property seekers and partners, while driving innovation and growth to shape the next chapter of the PropTech industry in the region.”

Lu Yao joined PropertyGuru as Singapore’s Managing Director in September 2025. A seasoned digital industry leader, Lu brings rich experience in marketplaces and e-commerce, delivering commercial growth, driving operational excellence, and leading large teams across Singapore and Asia.

At PropertyGuru, Lu Yao is responsible for driving business and growth strategies that maximise customer value and impact, spearheading the commercial and sales teams, leading and mentoring a cross-functional country leadership team towards shared success, and managing business operations.

Prior to joining PropertyGuru, Lu was the Group Head of Marketplace and Bangladesh Chief Commercial Officer at Daraz Group (Alibaba International Digital Commerce), responsible for shaping the company’s commercial strategy for the South Asia region while driving the growth transformation for Bangladesh. Previously, Lu led the growth mandate for Shopee Singapore’s FMCG Cluster and Mall, building its retail and last-mile delivery businesses from scratch. Earlier in his career, he advised on strategy and organisational transformation as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company in China and led patented product innovation in research and development at Dow Chemicals in the United States.

Lu Yao holds a Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.) in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from Nanyang Technological University Singapore, a Master of Science in Engineering (MSE) in Chemical and Biomolecular and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from University of Pennsylvania.