UK railways pension scheme Railpen has appointed Maria Averkina as asset and development manager.

Averkina joins the £37bn (€42.8bn) pension scheme following six years at British Land, beginning as an analyst whilst before moving into the development team.

At Railpen, Averkina will asset manage and devise bespoke development strategies across the Railpen’s portfolio, delivering the pension fund’s strategy of creating clusters of ”assets with strong sustainability credentials” in locations with the opportunity to drive rental growth.

I’m proud to have joined Railpen given its significant success in curating such quality assets and focus on an ESG-led strategy to enhance its portfolio for members, said Averkina. “This is a very exciting role for me, and I look forward to achieving new value-driven benchmarks within the property industry.”

Matthew Howard, the head of property asset management at Railpen, said: “We are pleased to welcome Maria to Railpen as Asset and Development Manager and are confident she will contribute significantly to the business.

“With a strong track record, Maria is well equipped to tackle challenges and maximise opportunities in the built environment, delivering value to our investments and members.”

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