Chief Investment Officer & Co-Head - Europe
Driss Benkirane brings more than 26 years of experience to Harrison Street Asset Management and serves on the firm’s European Investment Committees. As Chief Investment Officer and Co-Head – Europe, Driss is responsible for leading the firm’s investment strategy and capital allocation decisions across the European platform. He oversees investment origination, underwriting, portfolio construction and asset management activities across the firm’s private credit, real assets and thematic equity strategies.
Prior to the rebranding of RoundShield as HSAM Europe, Driss was Founder and Managing Partner of RoundShield, which he co-founded in 2013. Over the following decade, RoundShield evolved into a leading European alternative asset manager investing across asset-backed real estate and private credit in Europe. He oversaw the firm’s growth from inception and established its investment platform across private credit, real assets and thematic equity strategies.
Prior to founding RoundShield, Driss was a Partner and Head of Real Estate-Related Investments at ESO Capital. Previously, he was a Vice President and Co-Head of Real Estate Special Situations at Highbridge/DB Zwirn in New York and London, where he was responsible for sourcing and executing opportunistic credit transactions across the real estate, gaming, lodging and homebuilding sectors.
Prior to this, Driss was an investment professional at JPMorgan Partners in New York, where he focused on the execution and asset management of real estate and lodging private equity transactions. He began his career as an investment banker at Salomon Smith Barney in New York, focusing on mergers and acquisitions in the real estate and lodging sectors.
Driss graduated with a B.A. from Yale University and is a native French speaker.
