Global real estate services firm JLL’s Head of Corporate Finance in Australia, Chris Key, has been promoted to an expanded role to oversee the firm’s corporate finance operations across Asia Pacific.
JLL expanded its Asia Pacific platform two years ago when Mr Key was appointed to lead the business in Australia. Since then the Australian Corporate Finance business has seen significant growth and completed a number of landmark deals.
JLL’s Head of Capital Markets, Asia Pacific, Stuart Crow said, “Under the leadership of Chris, the Corporate Finance team in Australia has significantly increased its presence nationally, delivering on a number of major mandates and establishing an impressive transaction pipeline.
JLL’s Corporate Finance platform operates across the region with teams in Sydney, Singapore, Hong Kong and Tokyo and has evolved from its previous base as a traditional fund raising and placement agency platform to now include a broader range of advisory services including real estate M&A, joint venture structuring, equity origination, secondary trading and strategic corporate advisory.
“Chris will now take on an expanded role to further grow JLL’s offering across Asia Pacific. This reflects our commitment to provide for the continued rise in global demand for real estate investment and increasingly for opportunities in the Asia Pacific region. While many groups continue to invest through funds or listed vehicles, a number of the world’s biggest investors have shown an increasing bias for investing in club deals or through joint ventures alongside operating partners. Additionally given the competitive landscape in many markets, investors are looking for alternate ways to access assets such as through M&A or develop-to-core strategies,” said Mr Crow.
In the last quarter of 2014, JLL Corporate Finance in Australia completed three corporate transactions including the sale of Aviva Investors’ US$1.2bn Asia Pacific real estate funds management platform to J.P. Morgan Asset Management, the sale of LBP Holdings (the owner of Lakes Business Park) to Dexus for AUD153.5 million and the divestment of Arena Investment Management’s Arena Office Fund and Arena Property Fund for AUD331 million.
Mr Key has over 15 years’ experience in investment banking and funds management having advised some of Australia’s largest real estate corporations and investment managers. He has worked in both Australia and the United Kingdom, advising on transactions covering the UK, Europe, US, Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
