Specialist lender to the UK real estate market, GRE Finance, has bolstered its team with two new hires.
Clare Grimes has joined as an associate director from real estate investor Octopus Real Estate. At Octopus, Grimes specialised in the origination and execution of primarily commercial real estate debt transactions.
Archie Dickinson has also joined GRE Finance as an associate director from Hilltop Credit Partners. Dickinson has more than 10 years’ experience of real estate finance, specialising in origination, underwriting and execution.
Daniel Benton, director at GRE Finance, said: “The opportunities in the UK’s real estate debt markets today are vast, and the appointments of Clare and Archie to kick-off this year put us in prime position to seize what could be a once in a decade opportunity. We remained active through 2023, focusing on strategic asset management in the first half of the year before identifying market opportunities in the latter half and agreeing more than £30m in real estate financing.
“Our opportunistic and value-add approach, depth of expertise in property development and management as well as financing, and willingness to take on projects involving planning risk means that we are very well placed to support a range of transactions taking place in the market.”
Grimes added: “Because of GRE Finance’s unique approach to real estate debt, taking on risk profiles that other lenders don’t have the expertise to support, it’s one of the most interesting firms out there. Given the economic climate we’re in, this is one of the most exciting times to join such an agile team. I’m really looking forward to leading origination efforts and working with Daniel, Michael, Archie and the rest of the team to navigate the choppy waters to drive real and attractive returns for all parties.”
