John Carrafiell
Co-CEO
John Carrafiell
Co-CEO
John Carrafiell is the Co-Founder and Co-Chief Executive Officer and a major shareholder of privately held BGO, a leading, global investment management and advisory firm with approximately 83 billion in assets under management, 27 offices in 13 countries. John was a Founder of GreenOak Real Estate in 2010 and together with the team built the business organically to $12 billion (USD) of assets under management in 10 countries with over 100 employees prior to its 2019 merger with Bentall Kennedy (owned by Canada headquartered leading financial institution, Sun Life).
John is a 37-year veteran of global Private Equity investing and investment management, M&A, corporate finance, asset-backed securitization, and real estate (32 years based in London and Europe). He became Head of European Real Estate for Morgan Stanley in 1994 (at the age of 29) and rose during a 22-year career to be Co-Head of Global Real Estate (both principal investing with $100 billion of AUM, and Investment Banking) and to serve as a member of the Morgan Stanley Investment Banking Division’s six-person Global Operating Committee in 2005.
John is a member of the board and the Compensation Committee of Lineage, Inc., the world’s largest temperature-controlled logistics company, where John helped lead the company towards its IPO in July 2024, one of the largest IPOs in the past decade, and the largest-ever real estate IPO. BGO holds a significant minority stake in the company. John currently serves as a member of the Board and Chairman of the Audit Committee of Klepierre, one of Europe’s largest REITs. He is Chairman of the board of IREIT by BGO, a $1 billion gross asset value, Logistics and Industrial REIT, launched in July 2023. He is a member of the board of Sandow Lakes Ranch Venture, LLC, formed in 2022, a 32,000-acre (50 square miles) development project outside Austin, Texas, where BGO owns a majority equity stake. John is also a member of the Board of Norway-based Bulk Infrastructure (as a board member from 2020-2022, now as an observer), a leading provider of green data centers and logistics in Europe, where BGO holds an over 60% stake.
From 2011, John advised the New York State Common Retirement Fund and then acted as the Fund’s appointed board director and Audit Committee member of Shugard, Europe’s largest self-storage company, from its IPO until February 2019.
John was a member of the board, Chairman of the Audit Committee, and Chairman of the Operating Committee of Canary Wharf, the leading developer and owner of the London office district, where John led the $10 billion (GAV) LBO in the largest-ever real estate transaction of its type at the time.
John is a former Trustee of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and member of its Finance and Endowment Committee. John is the co-Chairman of the Yale School of Architecture Dean’s Council and co-Chairman of the Chelsea & Westminster Hospital Foundation Trust Development Board. John graduated Yale University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy. John is based in Florida, in BGO’s Miami Office.
Sonny Kalsi
Co-CEO
Sonny Kalsi
Co-CEO
Sonny Kalsi is the Co-Chief Executive Officer of BGO and is based in Miami, Florida. BGO is a leading, global real estate investment management advisor and a globally recognized provider of real estate services with approximately $83 billion of assets under management. BGO has 27 offices worldwide and over 1,300 employees. BGO manages real estate debt, and real estate assets on behalf of clients in primary, secondary and co-investment markets. Sonny has oversight responsibility for BGO's global businesses and is a senior member of the Firm's global Investment Committees. In addition, Sonny serves as the President and CEO of the parent company of BGO, SLC Management, where he helps to oversee the strategic direction and capital relationships of the overall platform.
Sonny was a co-founder of GreenOak Real Estate in 2010 and, together with the GreenOak Real Estate team, grew the business organically to $12 billion of assets under management in 10 countries with over 100 employees, prior to its 2019 merger with Bentall Kennedy. Before co-founding GreenOak Real Estate, Sonny was the Global Co-Head of Morgan Stanley’s Real Estate Investing (MSREI) business and President of the Morgan Stanley Real Estate Funds until 2009. At its peak, the MSREI platform had approximately $100 billion of assets under management in 33 countries.
Sonny is a graduate of Georgetown University and continues to be very involved with the school in advancing academic initiatives. He has been cited by Private Equity Real Estate magazine as one of the “30 Most Influential” people in private equity real estate globally. Sonny is on the board of several organizations including Georgetown University, Teaching Matters, Room to Read, Asia Society and the Hirshhorn Museum.
Jim Blakemore
Global Head of Debt
Jim Blakemore
Global Head of Debt
Jim Blakemore is a Managing Partner and the Global Head of Debt at BGO. In his role as a member of BGO's global management team, Jim leads the firm’s global real estate debt strategies, managing approximately $16 billion of commercial mortgage loan assets across the globe. Jim founded BGO's European debt team which has invested over $6 billion of capital from institutional investors and is an active lender on commercial real estate properties located in the UK and across Western Europe.
Prior to joining the firm, Jim was the European Head of Lehman Brothers' Global Real Estate Group for Europe and the Middle East. In this role, he oversaw Lehman Brothers European on-balance sheet real estate activities including commercial mortgage and mezzanine lending. At Lehman Brothers, Jim served on its European Operating Committee, European Fixed Income Executive Committee as well as its Global Fixed Income Operating Committee. Prior to that, he worked at Lehman Brothers in New York where he originated and structured mortgage loans and CMBS transactions. Jim began his career as an attorney at Thacher Proffitt and Wood (New York) where he practiced real estate and securities law.
Jim is a member of the Board of Trustees of Lewis and Clark College (Portland, Oregon) as well as a member of the Urban Land Institute and the Commercial Real Estate Finance Council. Jim is a graduate of New York University School of Law and Lewis and Clark College.
Devinder Gill
Chief Financial Officer
Devinder Gill
Chief Financial Officer
Devinder Gill is a Managing Partner and the Chief Financial Officer at BGO. He has overall responsibility for all Finance functions, as well as assisting with strategic matters.
During his tenure, he has been involved in various corporate acquisitions, restructurings for BGO and new Fund structures. He has also been responsible for overseeing the IT and Internal audit functions. He continues to represent BGO at various Audit Committees and Boards.
Prior to joining the company in 2003, he was with Daimler Benz Aerospace. Previous to this, he spent five years at Arthur Andersen working in both the Assurance and Tax groups.
Devinder holds a degree in commerce from the University of British Columbia. He also holds his Chartered Accountant designation and has completed the two part CICA in-depth Taxation Course.
Toby Phelps
Co-President
Toby Phelps
Co-President
Toby Phelps is Co-President of BGO. Toby has over 27 years of experience in European real estate markets and has been involved in over $20 billion of transactions across logistics, office, retail, residential, and healthcare assets.
Prior to his current role, Toby was chief executive officer at Investa Office Fund, an Australian office real estate investment trust. Before that, he was managing director and head of UK for Tishman Speyer Properties in London and managing director and head of UK and European hotel investing for Morgan Stanley Real Estate. Toby started his career at Jones Lang LaSalle in London.
Toby holds an honors bachelor of science degree from the University of Reading.
Amy Price
Co-President
Amy Price
Co-President
Amy Price is Co-President of BGO. In her role, Amy oversees its U.S. and Canadian businesses, and works closely with the Capital Raising team. Amy is a member of the Global Executive Team, the Management Committee, and the US Investment Committees. Amy also leads BGO’s equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) initiatives globally and chairs the firm’s EDI Leadership Council.
Prior to joining the firm in 2012, Amy was a managing director and head of real estate investing for the western U.S. at Morgan Stanley, where she was an Investment Committee member, and built the real estate investment management business in San Francisco. Amy also spent time in Morgan Stanley’s New York and Hong Kong offices.
Amy is a member of the Global Board of Directors of Urban Land Institute (ULI), and a member of the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of AFIRE. She is also involved in philanthropic endeavors, as a member of the Board of Directors of the YMCA of San Francisco, the National Charity League with her daughter, and Service Corp with her son.
Amy holds an MBA with distinction from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and graduated magna cum laude from Colgate University.
Julie Wong
Chief Client and Product Development Officer
Julie Wong
Chief Client and Product Development Officer
Julie Wong is the Managing Partner and Chief Client and Product Development Officer at BGO. In this role, she is responsible for BGO’s client and product development initiatives at the Firm.
Julie joined GreenOak Real Estate, a predecessor firm to BGO, in 2010 and has overseen the formation and successful closing of over $15 billion of equity commitments for the firm’s commingled funds, co-investments, and the firm’s other investment opportunities. She has 20 years of experience in the real estate industry as an investor, advisor, and operator.
Previously, Julie was an Executive Director at Morgan Stanley in the real estate investment banking and investing division. She played a key role in the formation and fundraising of MSREF VII Global, a $5 billion opportunistic fund and Morgan Stanley’s principal acquisitions in Brazil, Mexico and the US. Julie began her career in real estate in 1997 with Sunterra Resorts focusing on acquisitions and the development of a club system for the portfolio of over 110 properties worldwide.
Julie graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and an MBA from Columbia University.
Andrew Yoon
Chief Operating Officer
Andrew Yoon
Chief Operating Officer
Andrew Yoon is a Managing Partner and the Chief Operating Officer at BGO responsible for day-to-day operations of the global business. In this role, Andrew leads a team of executives responsible for the firm’s human resources, information technology, new products and innovation, M&A and change management activity, PR & communications, marketing, and corporate philanthropy. Andrew is a member of the Firm’s management committee and investment committees for various Firm managed funds.
Andrew was a Partner and served as Chief Operating Officer at GreenOak Real Estate, a predecessor firm to BGO, since its inception in 2010. Prior to joining GreenOak, he was a managing director, chief operating officer, and chief financial officer for Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing in Asia. Andrew was responsible for capital markets and strategic business growth during his tenure in Asia from 2001 through 2010. Prior to Morgan Stanley, Andrew worked as an investment banker in leveraged finance at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette/Credit Suisse.
Andrew holds a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Los Angeles and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.
U.S.
Jonathan Epstein
Head of U.S.
Jonathan Epstein
Head of U.S.
Jonathan is a Managing Partner, Head of U.S. at BGO. In addition to providing overall leadership to all aspects of BGO's business in the U.S., Jonathan is also responsible for BGO’s temperature-controlled logistics investments globally, and responsible for co-leading the firm’s US Core Plus investing platform.
Prior to the merger of Bentall Kennedy and GreenOak Real Estate in 2019, Jonathan was a Partner of GreenOak. Mr. Epstein led the firm’s investment efforts in the Western U.S. and was responsible for the firm’s investment strategy, sourcing, structuring and asset management for the Western region.
Jonathan has over 35 years of experience in a broad range of real estate activities, including principal investing, finance and Investment Banking. During his career, he has been responsible for the acquisition, development, financing and management of over $70 billion of commercial real estate assets and companies, representing all asset classes, in the United States, Asia and Europe.
Jonathan is a current member of Urban Land Institute (ULI), International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and the Pension Real Estate Association (PREA) and is a past member of the Policy Advisory Board of the Fisher School of Real Estate at the University of California, Berkeley, and past Vice Chairman of ULI in Japan. He is a Professional Advisory Board Member of the Rett Syndrome Research Trust.
Jonathan is a graduate of the School of Management at Boston University.
Steve Reents
Deputy Head of U.S. and U.S. Chief Investment Officer
Steve Reents
Deputy Head of U.S. and U.S. Chief Investment Officer
Steve Reents is a Managing Partner, Deputy Head and U.S. Chief Investment Officer at BGO with responsibility for leading the US Investments Team.
Steve was previously senior vice president and head of western region transactions at Bentall Kennedy, a predecessor firm to BGO. Prior to that role, Steve was vice president of asset management at the firm, responsible for the investment management and performance of a portfolio of office, industrial, and residential assets. Prior to joining the firm in 2003, Steve spent 6 years with Mitsubishi International Corporation, where he was responsible for strategic business development and analysis in the international aerospace industry.
Steve graduated from the University of Puget Sound with a bachelor’s degree in economics and earned a certificate in commercial real estate from the University of Washington.
Canada
Christina Iacoucci
Head of Canada
Christina Iacoucci
Head of Canada
Christina Iacoucci is Managing Partner, Head of Canada at BGO with overall responsibility for leading the firm’s fully integrated Canadian Business. BGO Canada is one of the largest real estate managers in Canada, with $28B of asset under management, across 64 million square feet (as of Q3 2023). Christina is a member of BGO’s Global Management Committee and chairs BGO’s Canadian Investment Committees and is a voting member of the Independent Investment Committee.
Christina has over 30 years of commercial real estate experience specializing in portfolio management, investments, asset management, development, and valuation. Christina has been a leading force behind BGO’s sustainable real estate investing and innovation initiatives.
Christina is actively involved in the real estate industry. She is a member of the board of directors of NAIOP Greater Toronto Chapter and was President in 2023. Christina also helps shape the industry’s future leaders through mentorship for both NAIOP and served as a real estate mentor for the Rotman School of Management Master’s Program at the University of Toronto.
Simon Holmes
Canadian Chief Investment Officer
Simon Holmes
Canadian Chief Investment Officer
Simon Holmes is a Managing Partner, and Canadian Chief Investment Officer for BGO. In this role, he has responsibility for Fund strategy, execution, client relationships and governance.
Prior to assuming his current role in 2021, he was Co-Head of Canadian Investments for BGO and in this role had responsibility for the execution of the company’s Canadian investment strategies. Prior to re-joining BGO in 2016, he spent 10 years at the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), most recently as a Portfolio Manager with responsibility for Canadian real estate investments across numerous property types.
Simon holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and an MBA from the Ivey School of Business at Western University.
UK / Europe
Toby Phelps
Co-President
Toby Phelps
Co-President
Toby Phelps is Co-President of BGO. Toby has over 27 years of experience in European real estate markets and has been involved in over $20 billion of transactions across logistics, office, retail, residential, and healthcare assets.
Prior to his current role, Toby was chief executive officer at Investa Office Fund, an Australian office real estate investment trust. Before that, he was managing director and head of UK for Tishman Speyer Properties in London and managing director and head of UK and European hotel investing for Morgan Stanley Real Estate. Toby started his career at Jones Lang LaSalle in London.
Toby holds an honors bachelor of science degree from the University of Reading.
Francesco Ostuni
Head of European Equity and European Chief Investment Officer
Francesco Ostuni
Head of European Equity and European Chief Investment Officer
Francesco Ostuni is a Managing Partner, Head of European Equity and European Chief Investment Officer at BGO, based in London. He is a member of the firm’s Investment Committee in Europe and serves as Portfolio Manager for European Value-Add Funds.
Francesco began his career as a real estate investor in 2001. He joined the firm in 2013 from Qatar Holding/Qatar Investment Authority, where he led a number of transactions in Europe and the United States and invested over $2.5 billion of equity in both direct and indirect strategies.
Prior to Qatar Holding, Francesco was a vice president at Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing based in Milan. During his 10-year tenure, Francesco was involved in the sourcing and acquisition of office, hotel, and retail assets in Italy for a total value of over €3 billion. In addition, he played a leading role in complex nonperforming loan portfolio acquisitions with a gross book value of over €2 billion.
Francesco graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University. He was a recipient of the Landegger Certificate in International Business Diplomacy and the Peter F. Krogh Scholar Medal. Following his passion for value investing, he completed the value investing course offered by Columbia Business School Executive Education in 2010. An Italian national, he is fluent in Italian and conversant in Spanish.
Asia
Marcus Merner
Head of Asia
Marcus Merner
Head of Asia
Marcus Merner is a Managing Partner and the Head of Asia at BGO. Marcus is also an Investment Committee member for all of the firm’s Asia funds. Since joining the firm, Marcus has been responsible for overseeing all acquisitions and asset management functions within Asia. Marcus is responsible for overseeing underwriting, execution, asset management, and risk management of investments made by the fund.
Prior to joining the firm, Marcus was the chief operating officer of Morgan Stanley Capital Japan and head of Japan for Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing. He joined Morgan Stanley in 1994 and was based in Japan from 1998 to 2010. Marcus was a key participant in the sub-performing loan and nonperforming loan transactions undertaken by Morgan Stanley Real Estate Fund (MSREF) in Japan. He was also the lead acquisitions officer on many MSREF Japanese investments. During his tenure at Morgan Stanley, he also worked in the Securitized Product Group and Corporate Finance Group. Marcus spent 1 year with The Shidler Group in Honolulu, Hawaii, from 1997 to 1998 prior to returning to Morgan Stanley in 1998.
Marcus graduated with a concentration in real estate finance from the University of Southern California. Marcus was born and raised in Japan and is fluent in Japanese.
Dan Klebes
Head of Japan
Dan Klebes
Head of Japan
Dan Klebes is a Managing Partner and Head of Japan at BGO, based in Tokyo. Dan is President and Representative Director of BGO K.K.
Dan has over 30 years of experience in the Japanese real estate market as an investor and investment banker. Dan began his career in 1987 at Goldman Sachs and during his 17-year tenure founded and led Goldman Sachs’ Japanese Real Estate Principal Investment Area, acquired over $5 billion of Japanese real estate-related investments, and helped build Goldman Sachs’ property investment and asset management operations from startup to over 200 professionals. Immediately prior to joining GreenOak, a BGO predecessor firm, Dan led GTO Capital Management, an investment firm he founded in 2010 where he advised and co-invested with clients in the United States and Japan. Prior to GTO Capital, Dan was chief investment officer for Japan at Aetos Capital Asia, where he led a Tokyo-based real estate team of over 100 professionals and grew assets under management by over $6 billion.
Dan holds a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and a master’s degree in East Asian Studies from Stanford University. He serves as the Vice Chairman of the Urban Land Institute in Japan. He has lived in Japan for more than 20 years and is fluent in Japanese.
BGO Strategic Capital Partners
Cherine Aboulzelof
Co-Head of BGO Strategic Capital Partners
Cherine Aboulzelof
Co-Head of BGO Strategic Capital Partners
Cherine Aboulzelof is a Managing Partner and co- Head of Europe for BGO Strategic Capital Partners, based in London. With over 18 years of experience in real estate investing, she leads the sourcing and evaluating of investment opportunities in Europe and is a member of the Investment Committee. Prior to merging with BGO in April 2021, Cherine held similar responsibilities under the firm name Metropolitan Real Estate Equity Management, wholly owned by The Carlyle Group.
Prior to joining the firm, Cherine was a Partner and Head of Europe at 90 North Real Estate Partners where she led the firm’s investments in Europe for three years. Prior to that, she spent eight years at Arcapita, a global private equity firm where she was a Director and Head of Europe and responsible for acquisitions and asset management across a number of assets classes and countries. Prior to that, Cherine spent eight years in investment banking in London and New York at Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan.
Cherine is an INREV Young Professionals mentor and a member of the GRI Europe Women Leading Real Estate Advisory Board. She is also a board member of the Women in Safe Homes Fund (WISH fund) all – women advisory board.
Cherine holds a Masters Degree in Finance and Entrepreneurship from E.M. Lyon in France, and received an M.B.A from INSEAD.
John So
Co-Head of BGO Strategic Capital Partners
John So
Co-Head of BGO Strategic Capital Partners
John So is the Managing Director and Co-Head of BGO Strategic Capital Partners based in Hong Kong. With more than 30 years of experience in real estate investing, John chairs the Investment Committee, co-manages the Co-Investment funds and leads the sourcing/evaluating of investment opportunities in Asia Pacific. Prior to merging with BGO in April 2021, John held similar responsibilities under the firm name Metropolitan Real Estate Equity Management, wholly owned by The Carlyle Group.
Prior to joining Metropolitan, John was Director of Grosvenor Asia Pacific and held responsibilities including Managing Director of Investments, Head of China, Head of Fund Management Asia (serving on the Global Fund Management Board), and CEO of the Grosvenor Land Property Fund (a joint venture with Hongkong Land). He was also previously a Director of Jardine Fleming Securities, where he headed the Regional Real Estate Research team and was a top-ranked analyst.
John received his B.A. in Urban Studies from Brown University, his Masters in Urban Design (with Distinction) from the University of Hong Kong and is a Chartered Financial Analyst. He is also a Global Trustee of the Urban Land Institute, Co-Chair of the UrbanPlan Program in Asia Pacific and a Founding Committee Member of the Asian Association for Investors in Non-Listed Real Estate Vehicles (ANREV).