The former global head of BlackRock’s real estate business has launched a new investment and advisory firm, aiming to make hay during a “tumultuous” period for the market.
Marcus Sperber will lead London-based NorthCroft Capital alongside David Bearman, a founding partner of Firefly Capital.
The company’s investment arm will focus on opportunistic strategies on behalf of high net worth individuals and institutions. The duo will co-invest their own money and be based at 55 Baker Street, W1, where Firefly is also headquartered.
Sperber said: “It’s about finding and matching opportunities with not just the capital but with communities, because I’m keen to [generate] capital impact and social impact.
“When it comes to the social environment, the contract between capital and community has changed.”
Although he declined to disclose details, Sperber said he has “significant capital to deploy”.
“There are one or two opportunities that we are looking at closely, but I’m being cautious at this point in time,” Sperber said. Although he expects another downdraft in the markets, he also believes the market will bounce back “quicker than some might expect”.
“I don’t feel under any pressure to put capital to work today, but I feel pressure to make sure that I put capital to work at the appropriate time in the cycle when I’ll see that. I believe that’s coming in the next 12 months,” he said.
On the advisory side, Sperber will act for clients including Brotherton, Plus X and Fiera Real Estate, where Sperber is a non-executive director on the UK board.
“I’m looking to build something fresh, where I can help stakeholders in relation to my experience, but also leave a lasting legacy,” said Sperber. “One of the unique selling points is through the experience and all of the skills I’ve developed. There’s a lot of dots that I connect, which is why I’m setting up an investment and an advisory platform.
“It is about helping businesses think about how they lead their people, their real estate investment practices, governance and how they communicate with stakeholders; to help businesses move to the next level, and help investors access the built environment at the right points in the cycle.”
Before Sperber ran the global team at BlackRock, he headed up its EMEA real estate business and was formerly the portfolio manager of its UK Property Fund. He left the business in June last year, after 17 years.
He joined Merrill Lynch Investment Managers in 2002, before its 2006 merger with BlackRock.
In August, Sperber was appointed as a non-executive director at Cadillac Fairview, which has more than $30bn AUM and is owned by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan. He is also a member of Regal London’s advisory board.
Sperber acknowledged the difficulties of launching a business during a crisis such as the Covid-19 pandemic, but highlighted the upsides of being in real estate.
“People might say it’s an odd time to launch something, but I think it’s a really exciting time to launch because the market is going through a pretty tumultuous period,” said Sperber.
“From a macro perspective, clearly there’s a huge amount going on. In the medium term, there’s real pressure on the economy. There’s large scale borrowing and increased unemployment and there will be an increased need for public services. At the moment, markets aren’t fully pricing in the problems that are to come.
“I worry there could be another leg down in the markets. You just need to look at oil prices and unemployment numbers. But on the flipside, we’ve got interest rates that are going to be lower for much longer. We’ve got QE; we’ve got inflation, which is absolutely key to get us out of this crisis. That will mean a flow to real assets, and real estate in particular.”
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