Piani joins Ardian for European real estate drive

Olivier Piani, former CEO of Allianz Real Estate, has joined Ardian to help the €46 bn global private equity group establish a real estate investment platform in Europe.

Piani has been appointed senior advisor and chairman of the investment committee of Ardian Real Estate, which was established in September 2015.

His role will be to help build up the real estate arm. Piani will be particularly involved in its strategy, management and origination, and work closely with Bertrand Julien-Laferrière, who leads the real estate practice at Ardian, as well as the rest of the real estate team, the company said.

Ardian was founded in 1996 and is led by Dominique Senequier. The independent private investment and fund managements company has assets of $50 bn (€46 bn) managed or advised in Europe, North America and Asia.

The company refers to real estate as the fifth pillar of its investment activity. The new business line, Ardian Real Estate, plans to build-up a portfolio of commercial property assets in the Eurozone focusing on the core plus / value added segment.

Dominique Senequier, president of Ardian said: 'Our objective is to become a leading player in the real estate market, combining the company’s on-the-ground knowledge and relationships with the global perspective which has so often given Ardian its competitive edge.'

Piani joins Ardian from Allianz Real Estate where he held the role of CEO from 2008. While there, he built a worldwide investment/asset management platform with more than 450 employees in seven countries, managing over €25 bn of real estate assets and €10 bn in real estate loans globally. Previously he was CEO of GE Capital Real Estate Europe from 1998, where he built up the company and its pan-European real estate portfolio. Prior to joining GE, he was CEO of UIC-Sofal and deputy head of real estate restructuring of Paribas Group.