CB Richard Ellis Investors, the investment management arm of CB Richard Ellis Group, the world’s largest commercial real estate services firm, announced today the opening of its regional office in the Dubai International Financial Centre. “There is significant demand from sophisticated regional institutional and professional investors for stabilized income-producing assets, and many are looking to migrate to best-in-class managers who can restructure their existing real estate portfolios,” said CBRE Investors Managing Director Fadi Al Khatib, who heads the new UAE office. “Given the re-pricing of global real estate assets over the past two years and the international investment opportunities available to well-capitalized investors, we believe institutions in the region will aggressively grow their real estate portfolio allocations over the next few years.” Al Khatib said the region represents a tremendous opportunity for the firm, noting that CBRE Investors already has existing mandates with two major regional sovereign wealth funds and is now in active discussions with several key institutional investors and financial institutions. Al Khatib said the added local presence demonstrates the firm’s commitment to the region and its philosophy of working closely with investors and financial institutions to better service their needs. CBRE Investors was established in the U.S. in 1972 and currently manages US$33.7 billion in assets globally for 190 institutional clients through 20 offices worldwide. The firm’s investment management capabilities include U.S., European, and Asian direct real estate separate accounts and commingled funds, a U.S. real estate finance investment program, global real estate securities and a multi-manager program. The firm and its clients benefit from the extensive and comprehensive market intelligence and research provided by CB Richard Ellis’ global network of approximately 29,000 employees in over 300 offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide.