REG - Empiric Student Prop - New Chief Financial & Sustainability Officer

Empiric Student PropertyAnnouncement

04/08/2022 07:15

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RNS Number : 8558U  Empiric Student Property PLC  04 August 2022

4 August 2022

Empiric Student Property plc

("Empiric" or the "Company" or, together with its subsidiaries, the "Group")

APPOINTMENT OF NEW CHIEF FINANCIAL AND SUSTAINABILITY OFFICER

Empiric Student Property plc (ticker: ESP), the owner and operator of premium
student accommodation serving key UK universities, is pleased to announce the
appointment of Donald Grant as Chief Financial & Sustainability Officer
Designate and Executive Director of the Company.

 

Donald is an experienced CFO having held board and executive level
responsibilities across a breadth of senior finance roles, with a proven track
record of over 20 years of working for FTSE 350 real estate companies, as well
as major financial services firms.

 

Most recently he was CFO at RDI REIT plc (2015-2022), an income focused UK
REIT, leading on all finance matters, including establishing and driving RDI's
sustainability agenda, through to its eventual take private and delisting.
Prior to this, Donald was Head of Finance at Liberty International plc, a FTSE
100 UK REIT, from 2008. Two years later, when the business was de-merged, he
moved with Capital & Counties Properties plc (Capco) as its Group
Financial Controller. Donald set up and managed the new FTSE 250 financial
control and business planning function and advised the CFO, Executive and
Board on financial matters. Previously, he was Head of Financial &
Regulatory Control for Europe and Asia at Cantor Fitzgerald LP and BGC
Partners, a US based inter-dealer broker (2006-2008). Early in his career,
Donald spent eight years in senior finance roles most notably with ABN Amro
Bank and Credit Suisse First Boston. Donald is a Chartered Accountant (NZ),
having trained at Coopers & Lybrand.

 

Donald's appointment as Executive Director will be effective from 12 September
2022 and, following a handover period to ensure an orderly transition, Donald
will replace Lynne Fennah, who, as announced on 23 May 2022, has decided to
step down from her role to pursue other interests.

 

Duncan Garrood, CEO of Empiric Student Property plc, commented:

"On behalf of the Company, I am delighted to announce that we have appointed
Donald as our new Chief Financial & Sustainability Officer. He is a
strong, commercial and strategic CFO with a well-established successful track
record in senior finance roles at FTSE 350 UK real estate companies, a
combination that will be invaluable. We very much look forward to working
closely with Donald as we continue to deliver benefits from the improvements
we continue to make to our business and portfolio, further strengthening the
performance and potential of Empiric.

 

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Lynne for her invaluable
contribution and commitment to the business over the last five years. We are
all immensely grateful for Lynne's great work, which has been integral to the
transformation of Empiric. I wish her all the best for the future."

 

Donald Grant said:

"I am delighted to be joining Empiric and I look forward to working with
Duncan, the Board and all the team at Empiric, a business which has made
impressive progress over the past five years and has so much potential for the
future. I am looking forward to getting started and helping to support the
business execute its strategy and deliver attractive sustainable returns to
its shareholders."

 

Disclosures pursuant to Listing Rule 9.6.13 in respect of Donald Grant:

 

LR 9.6.13 (i): Previous directorships:

 

Donald was previously a Director of RDI REIT PLC which delisted from the
London Stock Exchange in May 2021. Donald is no longer a Director of RDI REIT
PLC.

 

LR 9.6.13 (iii): Creditors voluntary liquidations:

 

As part of his role at RDI REIT PLC, Donald was a Director of, inter alia,
four single asset special purpose vehicles being Byron Place Seaham Limited,
Seaham Limited, Grand Arcade Wigan Limited and Standishgate Wigan Limited.
These SPVs held RDI REIT PLC's interests in four regional shopping centers.
Following a period of declining valuations in the sector, a consensual
agreement was reached with the lender to appoint a fixed charge receiver to
market and sell the properties. Once that was completed Byron Place Seaham
Limited & Seaham Limited entered into a creditors voluntary liquidation on
30th September 2020 and Grand Arcade Wigan Limited and Standishgate Wigan
Limited entered into a creditors voluntary liquidation on 25th January 2021.

 

There are no other details to disclose under Listing Rule 9.6.13 in respect of
Donald Grant's appointment.

 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY, PLEASE CONTACT:

 Empiric Student Property plc                                 (via Maitland/amo below)
 Duncan Garrood (Chief Executive Officer)
 Lynne Fennah (Chief Financial & Sustainability Officer)

 Jefferies International Limited                              020 7029 8000
 Tom Yeadon
 Andrew Morris

 Peel Hunt LLP                                                020 7418 8900

 Capel Irwin

 Carl Gough

 Maitland/amo (Communications Adviser)                        07747 113 930 / 020 7379 5151
 James Benjamin                                               empiric-maitland@maitland.co.uk (mailto:empiric-maitland@maitland.co.uk)
 Alistair de Kare-Silver

 

The Company's LEI is 213800FPF38IBPRFPU87.

 

Further information on Empiric can be found on the Company's website at
www.empiric.co.uk (http://www.empiric.co.uk/) .

 

Notes:

Empiric Student Property plc is a leading provider and operator of modern,
predominantly direct-let, premium student accommodation serving key UK
universities. Investing in both operating and development assets, Empiric is a
fully integrated operational student property business focused on premium
studio-led accommodation managed through its Hello Student® operating
platform, that is attractive to affluent growing student segments.

 

The Company, an internally managed real estate investment trust ("REIT")
incorporated in England and Wales, listed on the premium listing segment of
the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority and was admitted to
trading on the main market for listed securities of the London Stock Exchange
in June 2014.

 

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