UK-based advisory firm FRP has appointed Ralph El Achkar as associate director in its real estate pillar, strengthening the team’s investment finance capabilities.

El Achkar has a background in banking and spent the last seven years lending against UK real estate.

“Ralph has spent his career on the other side of the table, and latterly on both sides of the balance sheet – originating deals, then structuring how they were funded and distributed,” said Andrew Robinson, partner at FRP’s real estate segment. “That gives him a clear read on how lenders think and what makes a case credible.”

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Most recently, El Achkar led a team of relationship managers at Al Rayan Bank, closing real estate backed debt transactions of over £15m. He structured solutions for risk participations covering syndications, sell-downs, and introduced the bank’s first unfunded asset-backed risk participation. He also played a key part in identifying alternative sources of funding leveraging the bank’s origination strength.

At FRP, El Achkar will focus on delivering intuitive funding solutions for residential portfolios, government-let blocks, single and multi-let offices, hotels, serviced apartments and student accommodation.

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FRP’s real estate segment officially launched in May, following the acquisition of advisory firm Arc & Co. last November, with more service lines set for launch in the coming months.

Commenting on his appointment, El Achkar said: “What drew me to FRP is the breadth – a full spectrum of advisory and an enviable pool of funders – which means a structure can be built around the asset and the client’s strategy rather than around a single product.”

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