AEW Europe sees potential to expand its separate account business via institutional investors in Germany and France, CEO Christian Delaire told PropertyEU at Expo Real on Wednesday.

‘We have had quite a few requests for proposals from German investors at EXPO,’ he said. ‘There’s lot of money around - several hundreds of million euros - that is targeting France and we are one of the biggest asset managers in the country. Appetite for real estate is good.’

A number of French insurers and retirement schemes are also considering separate account mandates, Delaire said. ‘There are many things in the pipeline.’ He declined to provide further details, but said he expected to see a few deals come through in early 2012.

With total assets under management of some EUR 17 bn, AEW Europe has roughly EUR 10 bn worth of assets in France, Delaire said. ‘We are the largest logistics operator in the country and we have a strong office base as well. We manage a significant portion of the office buildings at La Défense, including the Grande Arche and the Tour Initiale.’

AEW Europe focuses largely on core assets, Delaire pointed out, adding that only about EUR 1.5 bn of its portfolio is tied up in opportunistic investments. ‘In a context of fear and increasing risks, investors are looking for security of cash flow and a hedge against inflation and want to tick the obvious boxes.’