Swiss foundation AFIAA names real estate CEO

Former Gothaer Asset Management executive Ingo Bofinger is now responsible for the Swiss investment foundation’s real estate portfolio.

Swiss investment foundation AFIAA Real Estate Investment has named Ingo Bofinger as chief executive and head of fund management.

Bofinger, who joined the foundation in January, previously worked at the real estate investment arm of German insurer Gothaer Insurance, Gothaer Asset Management, as head of real estate. During his tenure he was responsible for the group’s indirect portfolio which grew to around €2.7 billion.

At AFIAA he is now responsible for a real estate portfolio currently consisting of 28 direct investments in cities including Frankfurt, London, New York and Sydney, with an investment volume of around CHF 1.45 billion ($1.44 billion; €1.36 billion).

In December, AFIAA closed on the acquisition of a Class A office building in Manhattan for approximately $150 million from New Jersey-based real estate operator and investment manager Normandy Real Estate Partners.

AFIAA was set up as an investment foundation by a number of Swiss pension funds with the goal to pool funds' purchasing power and expertise, and enable cheaper access to a complex and research-intensive market. It is based on the Swiss law regulating employee pensions and only allows tax-exempt Swiss pension organizations to join.

AFIAA manages real estate assets for the following pension funds: Asga, BVK (Personalvorsorge des Kantons Zürich), CAPAV (Caisse de retraite paritaire de l'artisanat du bâtiment du canton du Valais), GastroSocial, LUPK (Pensionskasse Luzern), PKBS (Pensionskasse Basel-Stadt), PKE (Pensionskasse Energie), PKZug (Pensionskasse Kanton Zug), PVK (Personalvorsorgekasse der Stadt Bern) and SRG SSR idée suisse.