Phil Barker is CEO and Managing Partner at ACRE Solutions. Before forming ACRE, he was a Senior Managing Director for CBRE’s Inc.'s real estate investment banking business, CBRE Capital Advisors, where he led the group’s Secondary Real Estate vertical in the Americas for over six years from 2015 to 2021. During this time, he developed and transacted capital liquidity solutions for a range of institutional clients including international Pensions Funds, Endowments, real estate Consultants and Advisors, Private Equity Fund of Funds and Family Offices comprising over $3.2 billion in transactions. Barker’s transactional experience includes LP position transfers of open-end and closed-end fund vehicles, GP led recapitalizations and fund-raising assignments, Joint Venture formation/sales, and other bespoke majority or minority ownership replacement initiatives.
​
Barker brings significant alternative investment experience to ACRE, having previously led CBRE’s Real Estate Derivative’s team in the U.S. from 2006 to 2010, transacting over $3.5 billion of notional value in index-based products. From 2010-2015 Barker worked for ICAP PLC, a leading inter-dealer broker, where he held roles as the Global Head of Precious Metals and SVP-Head of U.S. Inflation Derivatives. He previously served as an SVP with the GFI Group, where he specialized in developing and leading new market initiatives.
​
Over the course of a 30+ year career in the financial markets, Barker has held several senior trading and structuring roles for investment and commercial banks, including the Royal Bank of Canada, where he was the Global Head of trading and sales for precious metals; Merrill Lynch; and Barclays Bank, where he managed global trading books and structured product development.
​
Barker is an Investment Banking Registered Representative holding a Series 7 and 63.