London-based Ric Lewis has resigned as chief investment officer of AEW Europe because the firm is increasingly run out of Paris.
Lewis is understood to be leaving over fears that the company will abandon Anglo-Saxon entrepreneurship in favour of continental-style management.
AEW Europe, which is owned by French bank Natixis, is undergoing a restructuring that gives more power to the fund manager’s Paris headquarters.
Lewis’s move is understood to be unrelated to the retirement of chief executive François Pochard next year. Pochard was originally due to retire this year.
“Ric knows that French companies are run by Frenchmen,” said a person close to him, who attributed Lewis’s departure to the way in which the company was run. “For him, it must have been something big because he helped to build Curzon with his own blood, sweat and tears.”
In an e-mail to investors, AEW Europe said that Lewis is stepping down to pursue other interests.
EuroProperty understands that Lewis has no job lined up when he leaves in April. He will remain a consultant to AEW Europe’s €2bn European Property Investors Special Opportunities fund, for which he had helped to raise €788m in equity.
Lewis had been at the company and its UK arm, Curzon, for over 20 years. He had been the chief executive of Curzon Global Partners since its formation in 1999.
The name Curzon will disappear as part of the restructuring.
AEW Europe has €17.5bn of assets under management in Europe.
