AFM hires former Lendlease executive as head of capital

Real estate investor Assembly Funds Management (AFM) has appointed Lendlease's Peter Wylie as head of capital.

Wylie joins from Lendlease where he was most recently head of capital for group investments.

AFM founder and chief executive Michael Gutman, said: "We are delighted to have Pete join us at this exciting time for AFM as we are growing the capability and activity of our transaction team lead by Tim Meurer, formerly of Invesco and Corval."

"Pete brings proven capabilities in managing capital relationships, equity raising, and capital markets in general. He has a strong reputation and deep relationships with domestic and international investors."

AFM's premier fund Australian Diversified Property Fund 1(ADPF1) was launched in 2019.  It is a $350 million equity fund that is already over 80 percent raised and 70 percent drawn in a range of investments with a gross forecast return of around 17 percent.

Gutman, a former Westfield Group executive, is counting on his new head of credit to help the real estate fund launch new investment products to institutional investors.

"This will allow AFM to access larger transactions in the Australia and NZ markets as we exit lockdowns and market activity accelerates - further building on the successful track record of our first fund ADPF1," he said.

AFM has pursued a multi-sector strategy to date, investing in residential, childcare, pubs, service stations, large format retail, and industrial assets that Gutman said have performed strongly through the pandemic.

Founded two years ago, AFM is a partnership between Michael Gutman, The Lowy Family Group, and Alceon.