DWS announced that Jay DeWaltoff has joined the firm as Head of U.S. Real Estate Debt to accelerate the growth of its existing U.S. real estate credit business and expand its global private credit platform.
He will be based in the firm’s New York City office and report directly to Todd Henderson, Co-Global Head of Real Estate and Head of Real Estate for the Americas.
DeWaltoff brings over two decades of origination and structuring experience to the role. Prior to joining DWS, he was the Head of the Commercial Mortgage Loan Group at J.P. Morgan Asset Management within its Alternatives platform, where he was directly responsible for capital raising, constructing tailored portfolios to meet investor objectives, and approving all new investments.
During his 11-year tenure, DeWaltoff successfully led the team in building a dynamic commercial mortgage lending platform, growing commitments from less than $2 billion to over $13 billion. He has also held previous roles at Citigroup Global Markets and Cushman & Wakefield.
“With $116 billion in assets across our Alternatives platform and a 50-year track record, DWS has cultivated longstanding strategic relationships with investors seeking access to private real estate, infrastructure, and liquid real assets. We are seeing increased opportunities in the debt market due to the macroeconomic and regulatory environments which should deliver attractive risk-adjusted return potential to investors,” said Henderson. “We are delighted to welcome Jay to the team as we deepen our commitment to our clients in the Alternatives sector and look to take advantage of improving fundamentals in the real estate sector to generate above-average returns across the risk spectrum in the asset class.”
In addition to the appointment of DeWaltoff, Daniel Sang, Catherine Millane, and Khrystyna Bazlyak, join DWS. All three join from J.P. Morgan Asset Management. The new joiners will bolster the strength of DWS’s existing team which has a longstanding track record of success in real estate credit.
DeWaltoff added: “I’m pleased to be joining DWS during such a pivotal time for the real estate market. DWS’ brand in the real estate ecosystem, combined with its equity track record, and deep institutional relationships, provides a strong jumping-off point for me and the team to help drive the business forward.”
DWS has managed corporate credit portfolios for over 25 years, with over EUR 100 billion in dedicated investment grade, hybrid, high yield, and direct lending portfolios. DWS aims to build diversified portfolios that deliver attractive risk-adjusted returns with a focus on capital preservation to investors, which include governments, corporations, insurance companies, endowments, retirement plans, and private clients worldwide, according the firm information.
For Beatriz Zúñiga