AEW has opened a new office in Madrid and appointed Carsten Czarnetzki as country head, following the growth in its assets under management in Spain.
'We have been actively investing in the Spanish market over the last two years and expect our platform in that market to grow significantly over the coming years,' commented Rob Wilkinson, CEO of AEW Europe. 'Local asset management is key to real estate investment and opening the office in Madrid ensures that we have the right resource on the ground.'
The last 24 months have seen AEW complete four acquisitions in the Spanish market representing a total value of €153 mln, bringing its total assets under management in Spain to €343 mln. According to AEW, the investments were made on behalf of a number of core and value add funds and mandates. AEW plans to increase the assets under management in Spain to more than €500 mln in the next few years.
As head of Spain, Czarnetzki will oversee asset and investment management activities there while retaining his role as fund manager of Europe Value Investors which also has investments in Madrid. Based in Madrid, Czarnetzki will report to Russell Jewell, head of private equity funds at AEW Europe.
