Cushman & Wakefield has strengthened its EMEA Capital Markets business by appointing James Spencer-Jones as Head of EMEA Structured Finance.
James, who joins as a Partner from GE Capital, has more than 20 years’ experience in senior banking roles which also includes spells at N M Rothschild and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Most recently, he was Head of GE Capital Real Estate’s European Debt Origination business, where he built and led a team to successfully grow the firm’s real estate debt lending from a start-up in 2013 to a $6.5bn balance sheet business in just two and a half years.
Cushman & Wakefield’s new EMEA Structured Finance business brings together various existing financial-focused business units, including Loan Sales and Debt Advisory, as part of the company’s continued growth in this area. James will play a pivotal role in building out the European finance operations across its Capital Markets practice to support its large network of clients and beyond.
James Spencer-Jones, Head of EMEA Structured Finance, Cushman & Wakefield, said: “Cushman & Wakefield has a formidable European and global network and I’m joining at an exciting time in its development and growth. I see enormous opportunities in this space for us to add value with the structuring and financing of real estate deals, both for our existing and potential new clients across all of our European Capital Markets businesses. I am looking forward to building this business, the team and our breadth of experience and expertise to deliver real value for our clients.”
Jan-Willem Bastijn, Head of EMEA Capital Markets, Cushman & Wakefield, added: “James is well known and respected across both the real estate and financial markets. His expertise in structuring complex transactions on a wide variety of asset classes and across jurisdictions, along with his experience of building teams and businesses, will be invaluable to our continued growth. We are delighted to welcome James on board.”
Cushman & Wakefield’s EMEA business has seen an influx of senior talent since the start of the year, with the firm’s EMEA Capital Markets practice also bolstered by the arrival of Jeff Alson from CBRE as co-Head of Capital Markets for Central and Eastern Europe.