Art Capital hires ex-JP Morgan exec to lead new European CRE back leverage unit
Pan-European real estate credit advisory firm Art Capital has launched a commercial real estate (CRE) back leverage advisory division, led by newly-appointed Alexander (AJ) Storton, a former executive at JP Morgan.
Storton, who joined Art Capital as its fourth partner in late August, will establish and lead Art Capital Structured Finance (ACSF), initially advising clients on CRE back leverage and loan-on-loan financing, with plans to expand into wider structured finance activities.
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He joins from JP Morgan Chase, where he was executive director and head of EMEA and APAC CRE loan capital markets and EMEA CRE loan-on-loan, establishing one of Europe’s largest back leverage platforms, and overseeing numerous facilities supporting loans worth billions.
Prior to working at JP Morgan Chase, Storton spent six years at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where he worked across origination, underwriting, syndication and securitisation, including leading deals across the UK and Europe.
“Over the past five years, back leverage has quietly become a fundamental component of the European real estate capital markets, adapting structures and technology inspired by the mature loan-repo markets in the US,” said Storton.
“Our dedicated back leverage advisory business led by experienced lending professionals is the first of its kind in Europe, driven by a significant increase in demand from lenders and investors for independent, technical advice in what remains a relatively opaque and evolving space.”
Storton added: “Unlike direct lending, back leverage introduces added complexities – including mark-to-market requirements, structured guarantees and diversification criteria – which require specific structuring and risk evaluation knowledge.”
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Art Capital, which launched in September 2024, advises on loans ranging from £20m to over £500m, with the flexibility to structure larger or smaller facilities for clients.
It is currently working on more than £3bn of live mandates across the UK and Europe and is expected to have closed £1.5bn in transactions by the end of the third quarter of 2025.
“Back leverage can transform debt funds’ competitiveness on pricing and open up opportunities to match bank-level margins, while in turn, allowing banks to maintain real estate exposure without carrying direct risk on their balance sheets – a trend set to continue as new regulatory frameworks like Basel IV come into play,” said Tim Vaughan, partner at Art Capital.
He added that, having witnessed growing interest in the back leverage sector from both banks and debt funds, establishing ACSF will allow Art Capital to expand its offering in an under-served part of the advisory market.
Vaughan, a former managing director at Brotherton Real Estate, founded the firm along with Stuart Blieschke, who previously led KKR’s private credit business in Australasia and North Asia KKR, and established Pacific Alliance Group’s first special situations and direct lending funds.
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