CDPQ Promotes Otéra Capital CEO to Lead Newly Consolidated Real Estate Division

Canadian pension fund Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec has named Rana Ghorayeb as its head of real estate and first vice president.

Ghorayeb, currently CEO and president of CDPQ subsidiary Otéra Capital, which specializes in real estate loans, will oversee the investment team managing the Ivanhoé Cambridge portfolio and its more than C$77 billion ($56.9 billion) in assets. She will succeed Ivanhoé Cambridge President and CEO Nathalie Palladitcheff at the end of April.

“Rana’s career at CDPQ has been remarkable,” CDPQ President and CEO Charles Emond said in a statement. “She has successfully led a profound transformation of the organization since her arrival five years ago and led the growth and diversification strategy of the portfolio, making Otéra today a major player in North America.”

Earlier this year, CDPQ announced the consolidation of its Ivanhoé Cambridge and Otéra Capital real estate subsidiaries into the pension fund. The move is expected to save it approximately C$100 million per year. The integration, which is already underway, is expected to take a total of 18 to 24 months.

Beginning April 29, the subsidiaries’ investment teams will become CDPQ investment groups and will continue working under their respective brands. The investment partners and clients of the two subsidiaries will continue their business relations as usual.

Before joining CDPQ in 2012, Ghorayeb was president of real estate at Aquilae Capital in Montreal, and prior to that, she was vice president of real estate acquisitions at J.P. Morgan Asset Management in London, where she led real estate investments in multiple European countries. Before that, she was in charge of real estate transactions as a senior associate at TIAA in New York.

“I began working at CDPQ 12 years ago, and my attachment and my commitment to our organization have only grown stronger since then,” Ghorayeb said in a statement. “The real estate sector is facing big challenges, but Nathalie Palladitcheff and her team have transformed the portfolio to be better positioned for the future. … I am delighted to be able to contribute to the next chapter at this pivotal moment for the industry.”