DEVELOPER Gurner Group is continuing to focus on the evolution of its strategic capital-light funds management arm, and has appointed property executive Rahul Bharara as its first chief investment officer.
Bharara joins Gurner Group after nine-plus year career at Credit Suisse where he was managing director and head of Australian real estate coverage, and has worked on a number of high-profile transactions with both public and private property groups and brings experience in strategic advisory, capital relationships – both wholesale and listed – and structured finance.
“It is an exciting time to be joining Gurner Group; a company with a multi-billion dollar national pipeline of accommodation focused real estate product in a supply constrained market,” Bharara said,
The group’s current assets under management of circa $5.1 billion include its work across joint venture partnerships, and it is targeting domestic and wholesale capital, like-minded fund managers, family offices and private capital.
It has a multi-billion national pipeline across a number of divisions spanning build-to-sell, build-to-rent, hotels, funds management, wellness, hospitality, and property management.
Former Southern Cross Austero CFO Nick McKechnie was recently appointed as Gurner Group’s chief financial officer, bringing nearly 30 years of experience across cash flow management, capital projects, strategy, business transformation and strategic planning, and playing a pivotal role in growing the group’s capital.
Gurner Group sais, “The ‘capital-light’ model means Gurner Group can be nimble in its approach to new opportunities, leveraging its exceptional experience across design, delivery and construction to create a structure similar to other partners in the traditional property sectors – like office, industrial and retail – but with more of a focus on residential and lifestyle”.
“As the Gurner Group continues to evolve into an operator, manager, developer and capital light developer of city-defining projects, Rahul’s experience and impressive track record around working with diverse capital and property groups is invaluable during our next phase of growth,” Gurner Group CEO, Tim Gurner said.
“We’re aiming to be the partner of choice for investments across build-to-rent and build-to-sell, hotels and other accommodation sectors which draw upon our decade of experience in the premium Australian residential market, giving us an unrivalled knowledge of both the customers and the product.”
He added that global capital is “keeping a really close eye on the Australian residential market, and as migration roars back and population growth continues to boom, we are ready to make the most of these conditions”.
In October it secured a $1.75 billion fund for its build-to-sell business, after securing a $400 million institutional capital backing from Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC.
