Ares Management Corporation has marked its expansion into European real estate debt with three appointments and a €113m investment in Belgium.
Ares said it has appointed Philip Moore, Alessandro Luca and Anisa Dudhia to expand its real estate debt presence in Europe.
Moore joins as a partner and head of the team. Prior to joining Ares, he was a managing director in The Carlyle Group’s flagship Credit Opportunities Fund. Luca joins as a principal having previously been part of Goldman Sachs’ Real Estate Finance team since 2012. Dudhia joins as a vice president and counsel in the Ares legal team from Clifford Chance, where she focused on real estate finance.
The European debt team targets loan originations for Western European real estate properties, including residential, industrial, office, hospitality, mixed-use and retail.
Ares said the team has already completed its first loan, providing €113m in acquisition financing for an office complex in Belgium through a fund managed by the Ares Real Estate.
Bill Benjamin, partner and head of the Ares Real Estate, said: “As we continue to grow this team, we believe our greater focus on European real estate debt complements our existing Ares Real Estate team and platform and further differentiates us in the marketplace as a comprehensive solutions provider.”
Moore said: “Bolstered by Ares’ scale and collaborative approach and demonstrated by our first loan, we believe we are well-positioned to directly source loans and provide innovative financing solutions in the UK and Western Europe.
“Our pipeline of pending and future transactions continues to build as we seek to capitalise on the Ares platform and the robust market opportunity.”
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