Morgan Stanley’s Top Property Deal-Maker in Shanghai Resigned

According to Reuters, Morgan Stanley's top property deal maker in China, Garth Peterson. Peterson, a Shanghai-based managing director of Morgan Stanley Real Estate, who headed its China operations, resigned last week and his departure has been announced internally to property investment-related staff in Asia, the sources said.

A Morgan Stanley spokesman confirmed that Peterson was no longer with the bank. Morgan Stanley Real Estate set up its Shanghai office responsible for China deals in 2006.

The resignation of Perterson, a top deal maker of Morgan Stanley’s China real estate business, either sends us a signal that Morgan Stanley is concerned about Asia’s real estate market or that the headquarters, struggling with its balance sheet, is try to raise some cash by selling properties in Asia.

Since 1991, Mogan Stanley has set up 6 REITs.  The funds that are invested in international real estate are MSREF III International, MSREF IV International and MSREF V. In 2006, MSREF V raised $4.2 billion globally, 55% of which invested in Asian real estate markets including Japan and China.

Morgan Stanley is invested in both residential and commercial real estate projects in China.In 2004, it invested $75 million in a high-end residential building Jinlin. In 2005 it took over Shanghai International Trade Center, an office building, at $20 billion.