Daniel Fournier, the chief executive officer of Ivanhoé Cambridge, the real estate investment arm of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, is retiring in October.
“As I look back at the last 10 years, I realize just how much we have accomplished at Ivanhoé Cambridge,” said Fournier in a press release. “We elevated this Quebec company into the ranks of the world’s largest real estate investors. It has been an honour to work for a company that is so important to CDPQ and to Quebec.”
Fournier spent more than a decade at the Caisse, with the majority of that time spent in his current role.
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“Daniel has done an outstanding job turning Ivanhoé Cambridge into one of the world’s largest real estate investors,”said Michael Sabia, president and chief executive officer of the Caisse. “Thanks to him and his team, Ivanhoé Cambridge has built world-class expertise in acquiring, developing and managing real estate assets. His legacy — a unified and truly global real estate company with a clear strategy and solid execution capability — is one that CDPQ will be able to build upon for generations.”
Over his career, Fournier led the consolidation of the Caisse’s two real estate subsidiaries, SITQ and Ivanhoé Cambridge, into one entity, partly to help the firm conduct investments on a larger scale. Under his leadership, transaction volume came close to $100 billion, building a diverse real estate portfolio in residential, office and logistics properties, growing its assets from $31 billion to $65 billion and generating an average annual return of 11.8 per cent.
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Nathalie Palladitcheff, who was appointed president of Ivanhoé Cambridge in 2018, will also take over the role of chief executive officer. She joined the firm in 2015, working as an executive vice-president and chief financial officer. Previously, she spent more than seven years working at French real estate investment firm ICADE.
In her new role, Palladitcheff will work closely with Sylvain Fortier, the Caisse’s chief investment and innovation officer. She’ll be responsible for developing and executing the firm’s global strategy, as well as ensuring its corporate and investment activities are in alignment.
“It’s a real honour for me to take the reins of this company, which has a solid foundation and a future filled with possibilities,” she said. “I’d like to thank Daniel for his trust and commitment to preparing his succession. Supported by the strong team in place, Sylvain and I will carry on the work he started and push the boundaries of this industry in transformation.”