Regions

Arcapita hires ex-Lehman exec for Asia

The former eight-year veteran of Lehman Brother’s Asia real estate team, Blake Olafson, has moved to Arcapita to lead the investment bank’s operations in the region. He will be responsible for building Arcapita's portfolio in Asia, Japan and Australia.

GE plugs gap in Europe

Following the defection of a senior team to JER, GE Real Estate has redeployed a senior figure in Asia to Central Europe.

Istithmar opens in New York

The Dubai government-backed private equity firm has opened an office in New York following the opening of a Shanghai office last year. The firm’s high-profile investments in North America have included Cirque du Soleil and Barneys New York.

Investcorp ‘negatively impacted’ by financial instability, report

Investcorp president and chief operating officer Gary Long says the Bahrain-based firm’s investments portfolios were ‘under pressure’ owing to volatility in the financial markets.

Former Pakistani minister joins HBG

Razak Dawood, previously Pakistan’s trade and industry minister, will advise the MENASA-focused firm as it uses a portion of its $500m fund to invest in South Asia.

Singaporean group hires Qatar head

Pacific Star has recruited Knut Riesmeier from the global asset mangement division of insurer Munich Re to lead efforts in the region.

GIH to raise luxury apartments in Dubai

The Kuwait-based investor’s latest development follows on the debut earlier this year of its $500m Shariah-compliant real estate vehicle, Global GCC Real Estate Fund II.

Canada’s pension plans acquired $10bn of foreign property in 2007

Canada’s retirement system is fuelling property investment abroad despite the credit crunch, with lowly-geared pension funds looking to pick up bargains in Europe, according to a report.

Bryant returns to his debt roots

It may be under very different circumstances, but Mike Bryant is returning to the debt arena to help GE capitalize on opportunities in Europe and Asia.

Human capital gains

The private equity real estate firm founded by former Grubb & Ellis chairman Anthony Thompson has been in aggressive expansion mode with several new hires in the past four months.