Highly regarded banking professionals Alex Nikolaou and Richard Zhao have joined CBRE New Zealand, establishing a dedicated Debt & Structured Finance team.
Globally, CBRE’s Debt & Structured Finance business completed more than US$58 billion in loan origination and loan sales last year, and currently services over US$350 billion in commercial real estate loans.
The launch of a dedicated New Zealand team further expands this business platform in the Pacific region, with CBRE’s existing Australia-based Debt & Structured Finance team already originating circa NZ$1 billion in commercial real estate loans each year and managing a NZ$130 million facility established this year.
CBRE’s New Zealand senior managing director Andrew Stringer said, “Having an on-the-ground presence and capabilities in New Zealand will give us an even greater ability to provide end-to-end solutions for our clients and work with both lender and borrower clients to develop tailored real estate finance solutions.
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"This will complement the work being undertaken by our market leading Capital Markets team, as local and offshore capital continues to target New Zealand investment opportunities.”
Stringer noted that in the past 12 months CBRE had been involved in NZ$1.9 billion in commercial investment sales in New Zealand and fielded NZ$9.5 billion in bids from both domestic and offshore investors - highlighting the strength of investor interest in the New Zealand market.
“Establishing a dedicated Debt & Structured Finance team highlights our commitment to investing in our New Zealand business and expanding the services and support we can offer to our clients as the market continues to strengthen,” Stringer said.
“One of the things we’re particularly excited about is the opportunity to further diversify the available debt sources in New Zealand, tapping into our local and global networks.”
Nikolaou is joining CBRE from Bank of China (New Zealand) where he served as director of corporate and institutional banking following senior roles at Commonwealth Bank and Bank of New Zealand.
Zhao has a similarly strong financial services background and was most recently director, property and healthcare - corporate and institutional banking at Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC).
Based in CBRE’s Auckland office, both assume Ddrector roles in the team.
Andrew McCasker, who heads CBRE’s Pacific Debt & Structured Finance team, based out of Sydney, said the opportunity to expand in New Zealand had been under consideration for some time.
“New Zealand has always been on our radar and we were keen to provide the right infrastructure to support our activities here,” McCasker said.
“There has been a growing appetite from offshore banks and alternative capital sources to target New Zealand as part of their investment strategies. Having an on-the-ground presence will enable us to access, not only domestic banking and private capital, but these new sources of capital and debt that are entering and supporting the New Zealand market.”
Zhao said he was excited by the opportunity to join CBRE and grow a debt platform in New Zealand offering significant regional reach.
Nikolaou added that the opportunity to leverage local relationships and introduce fresh funding options to the New Zealand market, particularly in regard to the delivery of complex transactions, had been a key motivator to join the business.
- Article supplied by CBRE
