Chris Bennett, head of DekaBank’s London office, has stepped up to take the role of chair at CREFC Europe, a trade body for real estate lenders, with Brookland founder Nassar Hussain chosen as chair elect.
Bennett took the chair from Jessica Tomlinson, head of public sector and UK corporate banking at Barclays Bank.
Hussain has been on the CREFC Europe board since late 2020. He established Brookland in 2009, having previously held investment banking roles at Merrill Lynch and UBS.
Four new directors have been appointed to the board: Gregor Bamert, head of real estate debt at Aviva Investors; Nicola Free, head of commercial real estate in EMEA at Wells Fargo; Oxford Properties finance director Alison Lambert; and Matthew Plax, head of corporate banking at Mizrahi Tefahot Bank.
Bennett said: “The commercial real estate finance market currently faces macroeconomic headwinds, exacerbating the structural changes of adapting to the post-pandemic environment, and creating real estate with a lower carbon footprint and optimised energy usage.
“Through its strong focus on ESG together with its deep and diverse membership base, CREFC Europe continues to provide a forum for education and discussion to help its members navigate passage through these opportunities and challenges.”
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