M&G Real Estate Appoints Duncan Batty as Head of Real Estate Finance

M&G announced Oct. 7 in London that it has appointed Duncan Batty as Head of Real Estate Finance, effective Nov. 2, 2026. Batty will report to Martin Towns, Global Head of M&G Real Estate.

Batty returns to M&G after previously spending 12 years with the firm, most recently as Co-Head of Real Estate Finance. He joins from Revolut, where he served as Head of Commercial Real Estate Lending and was responsible for establishing and developing the company's commercial real estate lending business.

Duncan Batty's Background in European Real Estate Finance

Batty has more than two decades of experience across European real estate finance, according to M&G. During his prior tenure at the firm, he held a number of senior roles within the Real Estate Finance business and played a key role in building and growing the platform.

Before joining M&G originally, Batty worked as a real estate finance lawyer advising lenders and borrowers on UK and European transactions. He began his career as a lawyer specializing in real estate finance and holds an LLB in Law from the University of Nottingham.

Statements From M&G Real Estate Leadership

Towns said in the announcement: "Duncan's combination of deep real estate credit expertise, longstanding client relationships and valuable external experience makes him exceptionally well placed to lead the business. Having been instrumental in its development, he brings both continuity and fresh perspective as the team looks to capture the significant opportunities ahead."

Batty said: "I'm delighted to be returning to M&G and to lead the Real Estate Finance business at an important point in the market cycle. As banks have retrenched from parts of the market and a significant refinancing requirement comes through, there is a real opportunity for experienced alternative lenders to provide the capital borrowers need while giving institutional clients access to attractive risk-adjusted returns. M&G's long experience across market cycles, combined with the depth of expertise across the Real Estate Finance team and the wider real estate platform, positions us well to identify and structure those opportunities for clients."

M&G's Real Estate Finance Platform

M&G launched its Real Estate Finance business in 2009. Since then, the firm has deployed more than £14 billion across Europe on behalf of more than 100 institutional investors. M&G describes itself as one of the pioneering institutional non-bank lenders in European real estate debt, having helped establish an alternative source of financing for property owners when traditional bank lending retrenched following the global financial crisis.

Over more than 16 years, the business has provided financing across a range of property sectors and market cycles, supporting stabilized, transitional and development opportunities. It operates as part of M&G's wider real estate platform, which invests across sectors and the risk spectrum in both equity and debt strategies, with market relationships across the UK, Europe and Asia-Pacific.

The appointment also comes as M&G's asset management business has grown. Assets under management in asset management reached £356 billion at June 30, 2026, up £32 billion year over year. Group assets under management and administration stood at £387 billion, and private assets within asset management reached £83 billion, up from £74 billion a year earlier.

European Refinancing Wave and the Lending Opportunity

The appointment comes as a large volume of European commercial real estate debt approaches maturity. Approximately €617 billion of European commercial real estate loans are expected to mature between 2026 and 2028, with an estimated €74 billion, or about 12%, potentially facing a funding gap under current valuation and lending conditions.

European banks account for roughly 84% of commercial real estate lending, compared with about 54% in the UK and 40% in the U.S. Tighter capital requirements and reduced risk appetite are creating room for insurance companies, debt funds and other institutional lenders. CRR III is expected to reduce bank lending capacity across major European markets, with one industry estimate putting the potential reduction at 25% to 30%.

The financing opportunity extends beyond stabilized assets to transitional and development projects, where borrowers may face difficulty refinancing with conventional banks because of higher capital charges, valuation uncertainty or incomplete stabilization. Emerging structures include institutional debt funds, insurer-backed lending platforms, hybrid financings, mezzanine debt, preferred equity and whole loans.

Savills projects European real estate investment volumes to rise 25% in 2026 and a further 19% in 2027, which could support lending activity by helping establish new valuations and creating demand for acquisition, refinancing and recapitalization debt.

Outlook for M&G Real Estate Finance

Batty's return places a former platform leader at the head of M&G's real estate lending business as it operates in a market shaped by a European refinancing requirement, constrained bank balance sheets and institutional demand for private credit. His experience at both M&G and Revolut combines continuity in underwriting and client relationships with recent experience building a newer commercial real estate lending business.

Sources

• M&G press release, "M&G appoints Duncan Batty as Head of Real Estate Finance": https://group.mandg.com/news-and-insights/press-releases/2026/07-10-2026