Industry Vet Joins Coventry's Senior Team

Prior to Coventry, Murphy served as global head of Real Estate Investment Banking for Deutsche Bank, where he managed a team of more than 100 professionals in eight offices throughout the US, Europe, and Asia. Under his leadership, the team executed more than 500 separate transactions on behalf of clients representing more than $400 billion in total transaction volume. Significant transactions included the sale of Hilton International Hotels in 2005, and the Blackstone Group's acquisitions of Carr America Realty in 2006, and Equity Office Properties and the Hilton Hotels Corporation in 2007.

Murphy tells GlobeSt.com that his responsibilities are three fold: to help raise capital; to identify investment opportunities to invest that capital; and to time when to monetize investments. "Everybody wears a lot of hats," he says.

"We view the current environment as a very attractive one and our hope is that we see enough attractive investment opportunities," Murphy tells GlobeSt.com. "Our hope is that I would be able to help the firm raise more capital history to take advantage of the current investment climate, and that my relationships and transactional experience will allow us to effectively invest that capital and better identify appropriate time to monetize investments."

Murphy began his real estate career at Morgan Stanley in 1986 where he held several senior management positions during his tenure, ultimately serving as the head of its US Real Estate Investment Banking Business. While at Morgan Stanley, Murphy raised in excess of $5 billion of equity capital for the firm's real estate private equity funds, as well as private capital for third party clients. He also served as a member of the Investment Committee of the Morgan Stanley Real Estate Funds from 1994 until his departure in 2004

Throughout his career Murphy advised on landmark transactions in the retail real estate arena including the sale of May Department Stores' regional mall assets to a partnership of Prudential Insurance and Simon Associates in 1988, and advising and implementing the strategy for J.C. Penney Co. Inc. for its regional mall assets in 1989. Other significant retail transactions included: the initial public offerings of the Mills Corp. and Simon Property Group in 1993 and DeBartolo Realty Corp. in 1994; the merger of DeBartolo Realty Corp. and Simon Property Group in 1996; the sale of the Rouse Co. to General Growth Properties in 2004; the merger of Westfield Holdings, Westfield America Trust, and Westfield Trust into Westfield Group in 2004; and, most recently, the acquisition of Wilmorite by Macerich in 2005.

Henkel, Coventry's founder, says that "I have known him since we began our careers together at Morgan Stanley and know firsthand the range and depth of the real estate investment experience that Devin will bring to Coventry. His proven track record while running the real estate investment banking operations for some of the biggest firms on Wall Street, coupled with his deep, long-standing relationships throughout the industry is precisely what is required for this role. Devin will be a tremendous asset to our firm and will add substantially to our already strong team."

Murphy tells GlobeSt.com that he was attracted to Coventry because he wanted to go to a small private equity firm with a strong track record. "They have had a great success to date." Murphy notes that it was an added bonus to be able to work again with Henkel, who he has "known and respected for years."

Since its inception in 1998, Coventry has acquired and developed more than $2.5 billion of retail and mixed-use properties. The firm executes three primary transaction types: acquire existing assets for redevelopment; develop properties with JV partners; and acquire portfolios of stores from retailers. Recent transactions completed by Coventry across its investment strategies include: Valley Fair Mall in Salt Lake City; a $120-million mall redevelopment; High Street, a $105-million mixed-use development in Houston; and REX stores, an $80-million acquisition of a portfolio of stand-alone retail stores from REX, a consumer electronics and appliances retailer.