27 Aug 2025

We are pleased to announce that Matthew Abbott has been appointed Chair of the AREF Corporate Governance Committee.

Matthew brings extensive experience, having served on the Committee for the past four years, and we look forward to his leadership during this pivotal time for AREF and the UK real estate funds industry.

Matthew shares:
“I’m delighted to succeed @Emma Cullen as the Chair of the CGC having sat on the Committee for the last four years. Emma has done a great job of guiding a group of highly experienced and well respected industry professionals, all of whom care deeply about sustaining the integrity of the UK real estate funds industry.

It is an interesting time for AREF and the industry, with the launch of the Charter earlier this year and what is hopefully the early stage of a new cycle; I expect that the Committee will have plenty on its plate over the months and years to come.”

Matthew Abbott

Matthew Abbott

Independent

Matthew worked at Legal & General in their Investment Management team, as Head of Client Development – Real Estate Client Solutions from 2019 to June 2025.

Prior to this he was a Principal in Mercer's Real Estate Boutique. He joined Mercer in 2011 and researched real estate investment managers across Europe, covering all investment styles including commercial and residential real estate. Matthew is also part of Mercer's Dynamic Asset Allocation group and assists clients with strategic real estate advice. From an industry perspective, Matthew sits on the IPF Indirect Funds Working Group and the AREF Investor Committee and has previously been involved with IPD's Index Consultative Group.

Prior to joining Mercer, Matthew was a Real Estate Researcher and Investment Consultant with Aon Hewitt for eight years. Matthew holds the IMC, has studied the Actuarial profession and holds an undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Mathematics & Statistics from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and a postgraduate Master of Science in Real Estate from Kingston University.

He regularly appears in the financial press and is active on industry panels, discussing all matters relating to institutional investment in real estate.

 

We look forward to working with Matthew and the Committee.