Canada’s CDPQ Taps Rana Ghorayeb to Lead Real Estate at Reorganised Group

CDPQ on Thursday announced the appointment of Rana Ghorayeb as executive vice-president and head of real estate, as Canada’s second-largest pension fund carries out an organisational rejig launched in January.

Ghorayeb will oversee Ivanhoe Cambridge, the real estate investment division of Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec, which manages C$343 million ($253 million) in assets for the province’s pensioners. Ghorayeb most recently served as president and CEO of Otera Capital, CDPQ’s real estate lending arm.

Her assignment comes after CDPQ revealed plans to move its real estate divisions in-house and under direct control in a bid to save C$100 million ($74.3 million) annually. Ghorayeb’s new role starts on 29 April, CDPQ said in a release, with Ivanhoe Cambridge president and CEO Nathalie Palladitcheff scheduled to leave her posts at the end of that month.

“With over 25 years of experience in investing, including 20 years in real estate, both locally and internationally, Rana has a real passion for projects and assets that have a positive impact on people’s lives,” said CDPQ president and CEO Charles Emond. “Her appointment to head the Ivanhoe Cambridge portfolio will enable her to combine her extensive investment knowledge with her top-tier managerial skills.”

Transition Underway

Ghorayeb has led Otera Capital for nearly five years. Before joining CDPQ in 2012, she worked at JP Morgan Asset Management in London, taking responsibility for real estate investments in several European countries as vice-president of acquisitions, and at pension fund TIAA in New York, where she led real estate transactions as senior partner.

A graduate of Concordia University in Montreal, Ghorayeb sits as a member of CDPQ’s executive committee and on the board of directors at MCAP, a mortgage finance subsidiary of Otera Capital.

Palladitcheff is exiting her positions after eight years with Ivanhoe Cambridge, which manages a C$77 billion ($57 billion) global real estate portfolio. She has described the CDPQ restructuring as part of a transition commenced four years ago.

“The real estate sector is facing big challenges, but Nathalie Palladitcheff and her team have transformed the portfolio to be better positioned for the future,” Ghorayeb said. “Along with the Ivanhoe Cambridge team, I am delighted to be able to contribute to the next chapter at this pivotal moment for the industry, knowing that we have the key strengths to come out ahead.”

Following the transition, which is expected to take 18 to 24 months, both Ivanhoe Cambridge and Otera Capital will continue to operate under their existing brand names, with the investment teams for both organisations to become part of CDPQ from 29 April.

Ontario Overhaul

CDPQ broke the news of its transition just over six months after the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, Canada’s third-largest pension manager, announced plans to move its Cadillac Fairview real estate division in-house.

The restructuring brings Cadillac Fairview’s 37-strong global real estate team directly under the umbrella of the parent organisation, which has C$247.5 billion ($183 billion) in assets under management.

Longtime executive John Sullivan retired as Cadillac Fairview’s president and CEO last November, with executive vice president for operations Salvatore Iacono succeeding Sullivan in both roles.

In January of this year, Pierre Cherki assumed the newly created role of executive managing director for real estate at Ontario Teachers’ after serving on the board of Cadillac Fairview since June 2022.