W. P. Carey & Co has announced that its founder and chairman William Polk Carey died at the age of 81 at Good Samaritan Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida.

In a statement, the company's CEO Trevor P. Bond said: 'Bill Carey was more than our founder and chairman - he was the cultural leader of our company. All of us at W. P. Carey & Co. are mourning his loss. At the same time, we know that the best way for us to honor Bill is to continue to deliver outstanding results to our investors. It is up to us, as members of the team he put into place, to continue his life's work and to ensure that the standards of excellence he established at W. P. Carey & Co. remain intact.'

Bill Carey's career in corporate finance spanned nearly 60 years. Under his leadership, W. P. Carey became a specialist in sale-leaseback investment strategy for commercial real estate and the firm remains a global leader in the industry.

Listed in New York, W. P. Carey manages a global investment portfolio of approximately $11.8 bn (EUR 9.1 bn).