NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland have appointed Phil Hooper as head of real estate finance.
Hooper has worked in the bank’s real estate team for the past 12 years and has been head of UK housing since 2014.
He replaces Paul Coates, who stepped down from the role in November to join CBRE as executive director and head of debt and structured finance for the EMEA region.
The bank has a team of about 300 real estate specialists. At the end of June 2017, its commercial real estate loan book stood at just under £26bn across the UK, Ireland and western Europe, with £23bn-24bn committed to the UK. In 2017, it originated around £7bn in new funding to the UK market.
The real estate finance team supports about 6,000 customers through its UK-wide network of 20 offices. Customers range from SME housebuilders through to the largest FTSE REITs, with commitments ranging from £50,000 to £500m.
Recently, NatWest undertook the role of lead arranger and co-ordinator for a £108.9m development facility, along with the Greater Manchester Pension Fund and a syndicate of senior lenders, to fund Select Property Group’s £247m Affinity Living build-to-rent scheme in Manchester. The bank was also one of the joint backers of a £500m unsecured loan facility to student accommodation provider Unite.
Hooper said: “I’m excited to have the opportunity to lead one of the best UK franchises in the real estate sector. We have fantastic people in place that are focused on understanding our customers’ strategies and providing a consistent approach to the market. This gives our customers confidence knowing that we’re here to support them through the property cycle.”
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