Bentall Kennedy’s merger with GreenOak Real Estate is now in place, bringing USD $46 billion worth of office, retail, industrial and multifamily assets into the newly formed, BentallGreenOak. Bentall Kennedy chief executive officer Gary Whitelaw continues in that role with the merged entity, which will have head offices in Toronto, New York, London and Tokyo.

“As BentallGreenOak, we are committed to continuing to deliver strong investment performance and innovative investment, asset management and real estate operations strategies,” he declared in a joint statement with Sonny Kalsi, president, and John Carrafiell, senior management partner for Europe and the United Kingdom. “We are pleased to have received strong support for the merger from our respective investor clients and our employees in Europe, North America and Asia.

Kalsi and Carrafiell are founding partners of GreenOak, which was established in 2010. The New York based real estate investment management and advisory firm has a track record of targeting middle-market opportunities in U.S, European and Asian gateway cities, and also has offices in Los Angeles, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Seoul and Tokyo.

BentallGreenOak is an affiliate of SLC Management, Sun Life’s alternative asset management arm, representing more than 750 institutional investors worldwide. That includes oversight of approximately 62 million square feet of Canadian commercial real estate.

“This combination brings together two successful real estate platforms to create a world class investment manager, supported by the significant resources and long-term stability of Sun Life Investment Management,” Whitelaw noted when the proposed merger was first announced in late 2018. “GreenOak and Bentall Kennedy are two highly complementary firms with virtually no overlap in investment strategies or offices.”