Former head of Ping An’s real estate arm joins Winter Properties

He'll serve as president of the New York-based firm

Rick Singer and 800 Fifth Avenue
Rick Singer and 800 Fifth Avenue

Winter Properties has tapped the former CEO of a Chinese insurance company’s real estate arm as its new president.

Rick Singer left Ping An’s U.S. real estate venture — PARE U.S. — earlier this summer as the company pulled back on its investment activity in the U.S. In his new role with Winter Properties, Singer plans to help the development company grow in various cities, including New York, Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco and Seattle, Bloomberg reported.

“We’re interested in ventures and partners with emerging and well-established developers and owners in high-growth areas of the country where we can play an active role,” Singer said. “We’re agnostic to asset class.”

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Back in January 2016, Singer told The Real Deal that PARE was poised to spend “billions of dollars [in the U.S.] over the next two to four years.” But the Chinese government has since cracked down on overseas investment. Ping An’s investments in the U.S. have halted, while existing investments are being controlled by joint-venture partners.

Winter Properties’ holdings are a mix of commercial and residential properties — including 800 Fifth Avenue and 26 West 17th Street. In July, the company bought a commercial building in the West Village for $89 million. [Bloomberg] — Kathryn Brenzel