ABOUT Our People

As Managing Director, Chief Operating Officer and Head of Asset Management, Jean-Phillippe Gaudin is responsible for Regional Asset Management in Asia Pacific, as well as the co-management of AEW's platform in the region. He has over 20 years of experience, with 15 years in the real estate industry working for global Institutional Investors and investment management firms. His prior recent positions include Head of Asset Management for AEW in France (July 2015 to December 2017) and Head of Asset Management for GE Capital Real Estate in France. He started his career working as a consultant in Information Systems working for PWC and Cap Gemini Ernst & Young with a focus on technology, transformation, process and change management. Mr. Gaudin holds a M.S. in Engineering from Ecole Centrale de Nantes (France) and M.B.A. from Nantes University.

Yian Wang is Chief Investment Officer and Managing Director and plays an integral part within the firm's Senior Leadership Team, actively contributing to AEW's overall strategic vision and direction. She is currently portfolio manager for AEW's Asia Pacific value-add strategy and co-manages AEW's platform in the region. She has more than ten years of solid experience in real estate investment and asset management in Greater China. Ms. Wang has worked in both Mainland China and Hong Kong with prior investment management roles including Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing and Hongkong Land, a subsidiary of Jardine Matheson Group. She graduated with First Class from the University of Cambridge and has an M.A., M. Eng and B.A. in Chemical Engineering and is a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst. She is a native Mandarin speaker.

Jason Maxwell is Country Manager, Australia and Head of Transactions, Australasia with responsibilities including investment origination, acquisition and asset management. Jason has over 13 years of experience across a number of Australian and European markets. Prior roles include Senior Asset Management positions at both Charter Hall and Macquarie Real Estate in Sydney and London. Mr. Maxwell has a B.Com and a B. Law from the University of Wollongong in Australia.

Adrian Lee is Head of Transactions for Asia, where he leads the firm’s investment activities across key Asian markets. With more than 18 years of global transaction track record, Adrian plays a key role in advancing AEW’s Asia Pacific growth strategy, working closely with local teams to originate investments, drive disciplined execution and developing strategic capital partnerships.  Adrian rejoined AEW from Tishman Speyer, where he led Asia Pacific investment development initiatives and capital raising from institutional and private wealth channels. Earlier in his career, Adrian held leadership roles at Homax Single Family Office, UBS, PGIM and Union Investment, where he gained experience across investments, asset management and portfolio management. Bilingual in English and Chinese, Adrian holds a Master of Science (Real Estate) from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and graduated with a First Class Honors in Economics from the University College London (UCL) under a Singapore government scholarship.

Michael Moon is Director and Country Manager-Korea. Michael oversees the firm’s activities in Korea, which includes investment origination, acquisitions and asset management. He has over 25 years of real estate investment and asset management experience including the last 20 years in Seoul. Prior roles include Head of Macquarie Real Estate Korea. Mr. Moon has a B.A. from Northwestern State University of Louisiana and is fluent in Korean.

Kiyomasa Matsuda is Director and Country Manager for Japan. He is responsible for managing AEW’s day-to-day business activities in Japan. His real estate investment career spans nearly 20 years in Japan covering multiple asset classes and strategies. Prior to joining AEW, he was an Executive Director at Orion Partners where he was principally responsible for Orion’s investments in Japanese Senior Housing. Prior to joining Orion Partners in 2010, Mr. Matsuda held positions at CBRE Global Investors and Macquarie Group where he was in charge of acquisitions. He is a graduate of Keio University, where he earned a B.A. in business, and Rice University, where he earned an MBA. He qualified for the U.S. CPA designation and is a Licensed Real Estate Broker.

Mr. Nelson is a Managing Director and a Portfolio Manager of the AEW Asia Pacific Core Strategy. In this capacity he is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the strategy's investments and operations as well as working closely with investor relations on marketing and providing support to investors. He is a member of the AEW Asia Investment and Risk Management Committees. Mr. Nelson has over 25 years of real estate experience in the Asia Pacific region. Prior to joining AEW, he served as Head of Asia Pacific Property Research for Aberdeen Asset Management and as Head of Real Estate Intelligence for Jones Lang LaSalle. He is a graduate of University of Auckland and University of Texas at Arlington (M.S. in Real Estate).

Hanna Safdar is Head of Research and Product Development for AEW's Asia Pacific Region where she supports both the direct and indirect investment teams in the region. Ms. Safdar has over ten years of real estate experience which she relies on to provide research and strategy support for all new and existing property investments. She joined AEW in 2018 from Cambridge Associates, where she conducted fund manager research and due diligence projects across Asia Pacific's real estate and infrastructure managers. Prior, she also held a research position at DTZ in Singapore. Ms. Safdar has a B.Sc Real Estate from the National University of Singapore.

Ms. Han is responsible for overseeing the Fund Ops team in all matter of accounting for the AEW Asia Pacific Funds. Ms. Han has 17 years experience in real estate fund finance and operations. Prior to joining AEW, she held the role as Director, Real Estate, Client Operations at MUFG Fund Service (Singapore) Pte Ltd, leading the Fund accounting team providing full spectrum of fund administration services. Before that, she was a Fund Controller for the Asia Pacific Value Add Strategy at AEW and held similar role at ARA Asset Management Ltd. Ms. Han holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance from University of London.

John Cho is a Director in AEW’s Investor Relations Group and is responsible for developing and maintaining client and consultant relationships in the Asia Pacific region. Mr. Cho has more than 14 years of real estate experience in Asia, Europe and North America. Prior to joining AEW, he was Senior Portfolio Manager at National Pension Service of Korea. He has also held real estate investment position at Hana Alternative Asset Management. He is a graduate of the University of Connecticut and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Real Estate & Urban Economics.

Mr. Sparrow is an Associate Director and the Head of Client Services in Asia Pacific based in the firm’s Singapore office. He is responsible for maintaining client and consultant relationships in the Asia Pacific region. Prior to joining AEW, Mr. Sparrow was with UBS Asset Management for 13 years covering various functions from risk management to client services. Mr. Sparrow has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Melbourne, Australia and is a CFA.

Steven Song is an Assistant Director in AEW's Investor Relations Group and is responsible for developing and maintaining client and consultant relationships in the Asia Pacific region. Mr. Song has experience in private markets across Asia, Europe and North America. Before joining AEW, he was Senior Investment Manager at Meritz Securities in Korea, responsible for real estate investment and asset management. Prior to that, he held private debt investment and leveraged finance roles. He is a graduate of Emory University and holds a Bachelor's Degree in Economics and Mathematics.