British Land's head of investment calls it quits

Steve Smith, a board member and Chief Investment officer (CIO) at British Land, is to stand down next year, the company announced on Friday morning.

Smith, 59, who joined real estate investment trust (REIT) as CIO in January 2010, will leave the board on March 31st 2013 and cease working for the company on June 30th 2013.

He was formerly the Global Head of Asset Management and Transactions at AXA Real Estate Investment Managers and has also worked as the Managing Director as Sun Life Properties.

The firm was keen to emphasise that, since Smith started as CIO, the business has made "significant progress on a £1.2bn Central London office development programme, invested £1.1bn in acquisition and disposed of £600m of mainly retail assets".

British Land has a £10.3bn prime real estate portfolio with 37m square foot of property under management.

Chief Executive Officer Chris Grigg said that Smith's property expertise has been "invaluable for the business and I am grateful for his contribution and personal support over that time."

Meanwhile, Smith said: "British Land is in great shape and I believe that in the coming period the company will continue to build on its excellent performance record. My very best wishes to Chris and the team."