Atelier, Precede Capital Partners, Allen & Overy, Paul Hastings, Savills Investment Management, Knight Frank, Turner and Townsend, Lincoln Property, CBRE, Kingbird Investment Management, Pitcairn Properties, CBRE IM
Savills Investment Management – Kevin Aitchison has been appointed to the new role of managing director – equity investments UK & Europe. Aitchison will take on business management responsibility of Savills IM’s equity investment teams across its UK and European platform at the end of 2023, and report to Alex Jeffrey, chief executive. The new role has been created in anticipation of the retirement of Kiran Patel from the role of deputy CEO and global CIO from April 2024. Going forward, Patel’s responsibilities will be split between Aitchison and a new global CIO; for the latter position, a hiring process has already begun. Patel, who has worked in the real estate industry for 35 years, including almost 12 years with Savills IM, will continue in a part-time advisory capacity beyond March 2024 and remain a member of Savills IM’s investment committee. Aitchison joins from Knight Frank Investment Management, where he has held the position of CEO for over 11 years. Prior to this, he was at ING Real Estate Investment Management UK for 11 years, initially as a fund director and then CEO. The international real estate investment manager has also appointed Apwinder Foster as the global head of strategy and client capital. In this new role, Foster will play a key role in driving a globally coordinated approach to Savills IM’s client-facing activities as well as product strategy. Foster previously held the positions of COO, and most recently head of product strategy, at DRC Savills Investment Management – Savills IM’s real estate debt arm. After joining DRC Savills Investment Management in 2015, Foster played a key role in institutionalising the platform ahead of its sale to Savills IM in 2018. Foster was also previously CFO at Kennedy Wilson Europe. She has also held senior roles in Deutsche Bank’s real estate special situations group and Merrill Lynch’s real estate finance team.
CBRE Investment Management – Aaron Vale has been named head of infrastructure client solutions. In this new role, Vale is responsible for driving capital raising and client engagement for both direct and indirect private infrastructure strategies as an integrated part of the client solutions organisation. With 17 years of industry experience including 10 years with CBRE IM, Vale previously served as co-head of private indirect infrastructure. He will continue to serve as a member of the indirect infrastructure investment committee and has also joined the direct infrastructure investment committee.
Lincoln Property – Christy Ingle has joined the firm as chief marketing and communications officer. In this role, Ingle will be responsible for developing and leading Lincoln’s global brand strategy, in addition to its business development, property marketing, media relations, and internal communications strategies. Ingle joins Lincoln from CBRE where she spent more than 20 years in roles of increasing responsibility, most recently leading communications for the firm’s advisory services and real estate investments.
Kingbird Investment Management – Mark Pasierb has been appointed president. Prior to joining Kingbird, Pasierb served as the CEO and president of Pitcairn Properties. Earlier in his career, Pasierb held senior roles at The Rubenstein Company and PGIM Real Estate, where he was partner and director respectively. Pasierb succeeds Ken Munkacy, who is retiring from the firm after five years at Kingbird and more than 30 years in the industry.
Allen & Overy – Kfir Abutbul has joined the firm as head of US energy private equity and a partner in its US corporate private equity and M&A practice. Abutbul joins from Paul Hastings, where he was vice chair of the energy and infrastructure practice and chair of the energy transition team.
Knight Frank – Olivia McCue has been appointed ESG Consultant in the firm’s energy and sustainability team. McCuewill joins Knight Frank from Turner and Townsend, where she was a junior sustainability consultant, specialising in helping real estate clients measure, manage and reduce energy consumption to achieve wider sustainability aims.
Precede Capital Partners – Daljit Sandhu, one of the firm’s co-founders, is stepping down from her role as COO to explore new opportunities. Precede Capital has agreed terms with a new COO who will be announced in due course and will start the role in early 2024. Sandhu co-founded Precede Capital (then Précis Capital) in 2021, alongside Randeesh Sandhu and Karen Dunstan.
Atelier – The specialist lender has appointed Bruce Robertson to spearhead the further expansion of its lending to property developers in Scotland. Robertson, who has more than three decades of property finance experience, is tasked with delivering Atelier loans to Scottish developers building in the residential, student and care sectors. Robertson is an experienced relationship director in the Scottish property market and his career also includes 30 years of progressively senior roles at Bank of Scotland and within Lloyds Banking Group.
