The new activity of the group chaired by Dominique Senequier strengthens its expertise in the real estate business and consolidates its leadership in this market in Europe.
Ardian, one of the world leaders in private investment, today announces the creation of its Real Estate Debt activity, dedicated to the management of funds and mandates related to the financing of real estate projects on a pan-European scale.
The activity will be led by Arnaud Chaléac who will officiate as Head of Ardian Real Assets Debt. With more than twenty years’ experience in finance, and Co-Head of Group Finance at Ardian since 2008, he has developed recognized expertise in structured finance. He joined Ardian fourteen years ago following various experiences within large French groups such as Air Liquide, Kering and Crédit Agricole. He will be supported in his new role by Sandrine Amsili, Managing Director, who will develop the platform alongside him. Sandrine has twenty years’ experience in the real estate sector, including seventeen years in real estate debt. Before joining Ardian in 2021, she held several positions including at Eurohypo, CBRE Global Investors and most recently as Director of Real Estate Debt at Scor Investment Partners where she participated in the creation of the platform.
The Real Estate Debt activity will mainly focus on senior debt and will aim to finance, alongside banks, major investors in value-creating European real estate projects. Particular attention will be paid to the ESG criteria of operations with regard to Ardian Real Estate’s ambitious commitments to create spaces and places for a more sustainable and low-carbon city. This new expertise complements Ardian’s Real Estate strategy led by Stéphanie Bensimon. With a strong fundraising background, the team benefits from a broad and diverse internal platform that includes Ardian’s entire network and resources, and will also draw on the expertise of Ardian’s local teams. in France, Germany, Italy and Spain.
Dominique Senequier, Founder and President of Ardian, says: “We have great ambitions and real estate is an important growth driver for Ardian. Thus, the launch of our new Real Estate Debt expertise is a logical evolution of our development plan to meet strong demand from our customers. The team, led by Arnaud Chaléac with the support of Sandrine Amsili, combines in-depth knowledge of the sector, recognized expertise in debt structuring and a large European network. I therefore have every confidence in our ability to meet this growing demand from investors to finance projects contributing to the real economy and to position Ardian as a key player in real estate debt management.”
Arnaud Chaléac, Head of Real Asset Debt & Co-Head Group Finance at Ardian, said: “The creation of the real estate debt business will allow us to support major real estate investors in financing their projects in a market where the big banks increasingly need alternative lenders like Ardian Real Estate Debt alongside them. With a team of recognized experts, excellent market access and the trust of financial partners, we are perfectly positioned to offer an attractive risk/return profile for our clients and thus contribute to the growth of the real estate debt market in Europe. »
Stéphanie Bensimon, Head of Real Estate at Ardian, said: “Since 2016, Real Estate at Ardian has grown significantly with equity investments through two generations of value added funds which have deployed more than 3 .7 billion euros of real estate assets in major European capitals, with a balanced risk profile and very good performance. This new real estate debt platform completes our offer in order to meet the needs of investors who want a secure return on debt with a very real estate approach. For the coming years, our real estate development ambitions remain strong in the different risk profiles that our real estate markets in Europe can offer.”