Self-confessed cycling obsessive John Forbes is convinced that the fund-raising market is ready for another turn in the saddle. By Samantha McClary
The words real estate finance expert and accountancy giant do not ordinarily conjure up colourful images, but when it comes to PricewaterhouseCoopers’ John Forbes they most certainly do.
Those who know Forbes will attest to his vast and deep knowledge of the real estate finance world, but will also accept that he does anything but fit the mould of a big cheese at a major accountancy firm.
Born to a Scottish father and Welsh mother, Forbes says he has inherited his father’s tendency to be patriotic to the point of being boring about the history of the Forbes clan. Any excuse to appear in public in the ancient Forbes kilt is seized upon and with Burn’s Night just passed, Forbes says he is proud of his ability to address the haggis properly and to recite other important verses of Rabbie Burns’ back catalogue.
And it seems that Forbes will take any opportunity to wear any kind of flamboyant outfit.
The 46-year old is often seen sporting a comedy tie, totally incongruous to the position he holds, but nothing is more outrageous than the team kit he proudly wears for his beloved cycling club, Birkenhead North.
A self-confessed cycling obsessive, Forbes has been a lover of bicycles since the tender age of 18. Two years later he met his wife, who along with his two children, Annie, 13, and Alex, 11, have also become keen cyclists. All four are members of Birkenhead North, which is renowned in the world of cycling for its not-so-subtle and not-so-understated kit. So renowned in fact, that the bright red kit earned Forbes the nickname Flambo on last year’s Aedas Cycle to Cannes – the 1,500km charity ride down to MIPIM.
Forbes joined PwC, through Coopers & Lybrand, in 1987 after graduating from the University of St Andrews. Initially in the tax department, Forbes picked up property as a specialism “without giving it a huge amount of thought”.
His more than 20 years at PwC has included three years in Liverpool and six in Russia, where between 1993 and 1999 he led its real estate team.
On his return to the UK, Forbes began to concentrate on the emerging area of real estate funds. He later led PwC’s UK and EMEA real estate services team, a role which he handed on in October last year to focus again on real estate funds.
Forbes says his return to the funds market has been led by his belief that the fund-raising sector will recover this year, but that managers will have to adapt so that they can deal effectively with a much broader range of issues than they ever have before.
