Morley has announced the appointment of Nick Ridgewell to boost its expansion into Asia

Morley has announced the appointment of Nick Ridgewell to boost its expansion into Asia.

Ridgewell will join Morley as head of the company's Asian property business, having previously worked as managing director of Macquarie Bank's real estate business in Hong Kong.

Ridgewell was seconded to Hong Kong for five years to manage Macquarie's real estate business in Asia.

This included responsibility for managing listed and unlisted real estate funds and execution of property investment strategy and transactions throughout Asia.

More recently Ridgewell has been based in Sydney as chief executive officer of Macquarie DDR Trust.

Ian Womack, managing director - property, at Morley said: "This is a new position at Morley and given our growth ambitions in Asia we are delighted to have secured someone of Nick's calibre, with a well established track record and reputation in the region. We have strong ambitions for our property business in Asia and are confident we can replicate the rapid growth we have achieved in Europe."

Morley opened for business in Asia in April this year and plans to invest US$10bn in the region over the next four years. The company plans to work with multiple joint venture and fund partners in Japan, China, South Korea and India.