LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC), the leading commercial real estate lender in the U.S., today announced the expansion of its Commercial Real Estate capabilities in the United Kingdom. The expanded London-based Wells Fargo team will better serve the needs of its U.S.-based clients currently doing business in the U.K., and will now offer services to key U.K.-based real estate entities. Mike Marino, a 24-year commercial real estate veteran who formerly led the bank’s Commercial Real Estate Institutional Metro Markets Group in Southern California, will relocate to London in early February to head the U.K. Commercial Real Estate office. Marino will continue to report to Chip Fedalen, head of Wells Fargo’s Commercial Real Estate’s Institutional and Metro Markets Group.
“With the current void in capital providers in the U.K. commercial real estate market, we see a tremendous opportunity to support our clients doing business in the U.K. and to expand the delivery of these services to both U.S. and U.K.-based real estate companies,” said Fedalen. “Our relationship focus, coupled with our comprehensive real estate platform, makes Wells Fargo uniquely suited to deliver a full set of financial services and solutions to our clients and to help them succeed financially.”
Wells Fargo’s Commercial Real Estate team in London will provide U.S.-based clients and key U.K. real estate companies with a comprehensive platform of financial services and solutions, including a wide-ranging set of real estate debt products; dedicated expertise in REITs, hospitality finance, portfolio acquisitions and financings; and, through Eastdil Secured, a Wells Fargo company, a full range of asset sale, debt placement and advisory services.
Current Wells Fargo Commercial Real Estate senior leaders, Robert Maddox and Cullen Powell, will join Marino in London to support the U.K. office and both will report to him. Maddox and Powell will lead teams responsible for client development, underwriting and loan production in the U.K. Maddox will also oversee Wells Fargo’s legacy liquidating debt portfolio in Germany. Marino, Maddox and Powell will join a team of real estate professionals already based in London. Jimmy Gray, who was formerly leading the U.K. Commercial Real Estate office, will now assume the position of Senior Credit Officer in the U.K. and will work closely with the team to continue building the business in the U.K. market.
“With the addition of these three seasoned senior leaders in London, we are well positioned for growth and anticipate an increase in lending volume in the U.K. this year,” added Fedalen.
Wells Fargo continues to support customer needs and economic growth at a local and global level. In late 2012, Wells Fargo expanded its Wholesale banking capabilities into Canada, including the addition of a Commercial Real Estate office in Toronto. For more information about Wells Fargo’s Commercial Real Estate platform visit: www.wellsfargo.com/realestate.
Wells Fargo’s Commercial Real Estate group provides commercial real estate banking, capital markets, and advisory services in a single platform that includes lending, syndications, debt placement, equity raising and underwriting, mergers and acquisitions and servicing.
About Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a nationwide, diversified, community-based financial services company with $1.4 trillion in assets. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through more than 9,000 stores, 12,000 ATMs, the Internet (wellsfargo.com), and has offices in more than 35 countries to support the bank’s customers who conduct business in the global economy. With more than 265,000 team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 26 on Fortune’s 2012 rankings of America’s largest corporations. Wells Fargo’s vision is to satisfy all our customers’ financial needs and help them succeed financially.