• Ferruccio Resta, former Rector of the Politecnico di Milano, takes role of Independent Director at COIMA REM, advising on areas including the integration of AI and advanced technologies into real estate
• Alessandro Rivera, former Director General of the Ministry of the Treasury, is appointed Chairman of MilanoSesto SpA
• Meka Brunel, former Executive President of CDPQ's Ivanhoe Cambridge (Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec) Europe and Chief Executive Officer of Gecina, appointed as independent member of the Steering Committee for the COIMA ESG City Impact Fund
• Jesse Freitag-Akselrod, after having served as European Head of Advisory at Green Street, joins COIMA SGR as Chief Performance Officer and Deputy Head of Asset Management

Milan, May 20, 2024 – COIMA, a leader in the investment, development and management of real estate assets on behalf of institutional investors, has unveiled a raft of new governance and management appointments at the top of the business and for its MilanoSesto mega-project, one of the largest urban regeneration opportunities in Europe.

The appointments bring further experience and expertise into COIMA Group as the business continues to build its portfolio of sustainable urban regeneration projects and value-add real estate opportunities, while maintaining disciplined and rigorous investment management.

The announcements come as COIMA outlined its three-year strategic plan (2024-2026), which will see it enter a new phase of growth, with assets under management projected to rise to over €12 billion by 2026, up 20% from 2024. The strategy will see COIMA continue to build on its focus on ESG-aligned urban regeneration and brown-to-to green asset management programmes, across both residential and commercial. The business will also further expand in the living sectors, in response to the significant increase in demand for high quality and affordable housing. COIMA is also considering opportunities to invest in sustainable upgrades to logistics assets, particularly last-mile urban distribution centres. The business will also examine the possibility of investment in alternative asset classes, including tourism, credit and nature based.

Manfredi Catella, Founder and CEO of COIMA SGR, said: “A series of major structural changes and global megatrends, including ongoing digital innovation, growing social inequalities, and the climate emergency, are fueling a constant and profound technical and cultural revolution in real estate investment, management, and development. These are generating important challenges and opportunities. Generating an impactful performance requires interdisciplinary skills, culture and creativity, along with financial, industrial, technical, digital, environmental and social knowledge.
COIMA Group’s continuous growth in recent years, with total assets under management now exceeding €10 billion, has been possible thanks to a team of 300 highly qualified professionals, aligned in values and with responsibility and passion to contribute to their country and the cities of the future. As we embark on the next phase of business development, these new appointments and promotions will help strengthen COIMA Group’s ability to rise to the challenges and opportunities of today and the future, ensuring we can deliver on forthcoming projects and COIMA's impactful mission.”

GOVERNANCE APPOINTMENTS

At COIMA REM, the real estate development and management business, Ferruccio Resta has joined the board as an independent director. Resta is an internationally renowned mechanical engineer and researcher and will bring his more than 30 years of experience in the fields of mechanical engineering and technology to his role at COIMA REM, advising on areas including the integration of AI into the operational management of buildings and implementing advanced technologies in neighborhood management. Previously, Resta was the Rector of the Politecnico di Milano, the top technical university in Italy and one of the top 20 in Europe in its three areas of study and research - architecture, design and engineering – and was was also President of the CRUI (Conference of Italian University Rectors) for three years.Among other positions he currently holds, he is president of the Bruno Kessler Foundation, which, with more than 450 researchers, represents Italian excellence in the development of artificial intelligence.

Alessandro Rivera has taken on the role of President of MilanoSesto SpA, to help give new impetus to one of the largest real estate development projects in Europe (over 1 million square metres). Rivera, who served as Director General of the Italian Department of the Treasury for 23 years, will bring his extraordinary experience in public finance to the project.

Méka Brunel has been appointed to the steering committee of the COIMA ESG City Impact Fund, Italy’s largest urban regeneration fund, which is investing in major projects including the redevelopment of the Porta Romana railway yard, home to the 2026 Winter Olympics Athletes’ Village. Brunel has extensive international experience in real estate investment, with previous roles including Executive President of CDPQ's Ivanhoe Cambridge (Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec) Europe and Chief Executive Officer of Gecina. She is the current president of Fondation Palladio (an emanation of Fondation de France), which aims to contribute to best practices in urban development, and is an independent director for three listed rela estate companies (Hammerson, Emeis and Eiffage). Brunel, who will support COIMA Group in its activities to develop best practice in sustainable urban regeneration, joins the independent members - Giovanna Melandri, former Minister of Culture and President of the Maxxi, and Ersilia Vaudo Scarpetta, Chief Diversity Officer of the European Space Agency (ESA) – on the steering committee for the fund, which has a target size of €2 billion.

MANAGEMENT APPOINTMENTS

At the COIMA Group level, under the leadership of Manfredi Catella, the team has been consolidated. Jesse Freitag Akselrod, assumes the position of Chief Performance Officer and Deputy Head of Asset Management. Formerly European Head of Advisory at Green Street (a role in which he has worked with COIMA since 2016), he has over 20 years of quantitative market and investment analysis experience in the areas of due diligence, research and development, private market valuation and REITs, helping to optimise portfolio performance.
Meanwhile, Paola Rusconi, has taken the role of Director Infrastructure, leading the development of this asset class. Rusconi’s previous roles include Director of Sustainable Infrastructure Europe at DWS, where she was responsible for a more-than €1 billion green transition portfolio, which included the first framework agreement with the European Investment Bank for the decarbonization of the industrial sector and the largest public-private partnership in Europe for net-zero transition in the hospital sector.

At the same time, Marco Scalvini assumes responsibility for COIMA SGR’s residential investment programs, as well as becoming Director of the Coima ESG City Impact fund. Scalvini will contribute to the Company's growth with more than 20 years of experience in the residential sector and 3,000 homes built, gained in various general management roles in groups such as Nexity, Bluestone, AbitareIn and Homizy.
At COIMA REM, Luca Mangia, has been promoted to the role of General Manager. Mangia has worked at COIMA for 20 years, initially in development management, with his projects including Porta Nuova, COIMA’s flagship Milan urban regeneration development, and then in fund management with responsibility for the Coima ESG City Impact fund. In his role, Mangia will deepen the integration between COIMA SGR's investment and asset management activities and COIMA REM's development and building management activities. Mangia will also sit on the steering committee of the ESG City Impact fund and in the investment committee of COIMA SGR, helping to consolidate the collaboration between COIMA's different financial and real estate expertise.

Editor’s notes:

In summary, as a result of the new additions and appointments, COIMA Group management responsibilities are now as follows:

• Manfredi Catella, Founder and Chief Executive Officer
• Fulvio di Gilio, Chief Financial Officer
• Vincenzo Tortis, Chief Technology and Digital Officer
• Dino Caprioni, Chief Human Resources Officer
• Kelly Russell, Head Of Sustainability & Communication
• Alessandra Alfei, Chief Legal Office & Corporate Affairs
• Giulia Niccolai, Chief Organization Officer

In COIMA SGR, management responsibilities are now as follows:

• Gabriele Bonfiglioli, Chief Investment Officer
• Matteo Rava, Head of Fund & Asset Management
• Jesse Freitag-Akselrod, Chief Performance Office & Deputy Head of Asset Management
• Giulia Sala, Compliance & AML Director
• Luca Coppola, Chief Risk Officer
• Antonio Del Buono, Evaluation Director
• Lorenzo Barbato, Marketing & Communication Director
• Miriam Michelutti, Finance Director

Finally, the COIMA REM management responsibilities are now as follows:

• Luca Mangia, General Manager
• Franco Gerbino, Development Management Managing Director
• Samuel Cocci, Property Management Director
• Stefano Corbella, Sustainability Officer