Deutsche Bank combines RE investment management groups

Real Estate Weekly, March 6, 2002

Deutsche Bank announced that it has combined the operations of its existing real estate investment management groups of Deutsche Asset Management (Australia) Limited, Deutsche Grundbesitz (Germany), Deutsche Bank Real Estate Private Equity Group (London), Deutsche Property Asset Management Limited (London), DB Realty Mezzanine Investment Funds (New York) and Deutsche Bank Fondimmobiliari SGR S.p.A. (Italy), to create a globally integrated real estate investment management platform. The combined operations will be managed under the direction of Richard M. Gunthel from New York and marketed under the global brand of DB Real Estate.

DB Real Estate employs more than 500 dedicated real estate professionals in 13 offices around the world. Its product offering is global and comprehensive, including core, value-enhanced and high-yield property investments as well as investments in publicly-traded real estate securities. With more than $21 billion in assets under management collectively, DB Real Estate will advance to be the second largest investment adviser of combined real property and real estate equity securities globally, based upon a survey published in the Pensions & Investments October 15, 2001 issue.

"The formation of DB Real Estate is a clear example of 'the whole being greater than the sum of its parts," explained Richard Gunthel, managing director and global head of DB Real Estate. "Each of the businesses that constitutes DB Real Estate has its own unique, well-established and well-respected franchise. Our objective in integrating them is to enhance the value inherent in each franchise by generating maximum cross-border access to capital, deal flow and equally important, investment expertise. Going forward, each of our businesses will be able to offer its clents unparalleled access to greater real estate investment opportunites and expertise globally. We also believe that our clients will benefit greatly from the sharing of best practices across our business with respect to matters such as client service and reporting. We do not want simply to be big. We want to be the best."

Gunthel emphasized that the challenge is to not only integrate the businesses but also to coordinate activity in such a way as to maintain a sound balance between local independence and global coordination. DB Real Estate is part of Deutsche Asset Management, the global investment management business of Deutsche Bank Group.