While continuing to be based out of the real estate advisor’s Manchester office, Colin Thomasson’s remit has gone national.
Thomasson’s promotion to head of UK investment properties comes after 12 years with the company, having joined from Ashall Property. During the past four years alone, he has helped conduct more than £5bn of real estate transactions at CBRE.
Despite his promotion, Thomasson will carry on as the lead advisor for the £840m Greater Manchester Property Venture Fund. CBRE won that contract from the Greater Manchester Pension Fund last year.
Thomasson will also maintain his position as an executive director and the lead for the Northern branch of the investment properties division.
What is new for Thomasson is the fact he will now be focussed on improving all sectors of the investment properties branch – not just the Northern one. Working with Richard Dakin, head of capital advisers of CBRE, he will work to provide clients with advice regarding equity raising, M&A and restructuring, sale and acquisitions, and debt.
Reflecting on the state of capital markets in the country, Thomasson said: “It is no secret that the capital markets have been severely challenged over the past couple of years, but it is in times like these where our clients are looking for more integrated solutions across the entire capital stack.
“I am delighted to be taking on this new role and working with our market-leading teams across the UK to ensure our clients have access to our full spectrum of capabilities and to further differentiate ourselves from our competitors in terms of the optionality and capital solutions we can provide,” he continued.
Thomasson added: “As we look to the future, there are increasing grounds for optimism and CBRE is exceptionally well-positioned to provide insightful advice to our clients, especially in those sectors benefiting from structural tailwinds including logistics warehouses, data centres, life sciences, and the living sectors.”