London-listed investment firm Man Group has appointed Jon Rickert as head of European private debt to support the ongoing expansion of its global private markets business, Man Global Private Markets (GPM).
Rickert will lead the commercial and residential real estate debt team as it expands its activity in select euro-denominated real estate markets and seeks to capitalise on lending opportunities, according to the firm.
'We welcome Jon to our global real estate debt team where he will lead the European business,' said Mikko Syrjänen, co-head of real assets, Man GPM.
'He brings a wealth of real estate financing experience with him and we are confident that he will be of significant value in driving the growth of our European lending activities. We are excited about the potential investment opportunities that await the team and our firm under his guidance,' Syrjänen added.
Rickert joins from Swiss investment firm GAM Investments, where he led the real estate debt business for the last three years. Previous roles included 15 years at JP Morgan, as well as a spell at Renshaw Bay as managing partner, where he founded their real estate debt investment business.
Rickert said: 'I am excited to be joining Man GPM and to become a part of its compelling growth story. What attracted me was our shared emphasis on conservative investment positioning given we are in a late stage of the cycle.
'Senior secured real estate loans, particularly in the euro-area, may offer a defensive credit investment for institutional clients and present significant benefits over liquid fixed income.'
The real assets business of Man GPM specialises in private real estate equity and unlisted real estate debt, with $2.5 bn (€2.2 bn) of assets under management as of December 31 2018 and teams in the US and Europe. The business has invested a total volume of over $4.0 bn in real estate debt across residential, office, industrial and retail sectors, with a focus on financing core plus and value-add projects.
