Savills Plc has completed its $1,112.5 million acquisition of Eastdil Secured LLC, the firms confirmed August 3, joining one of the world’s largest commercial real estate services companies with the industry’s preeminent investment bank for property capital markets. The deal, first announced March 12, 2026, closed at an enterprise value of $1.1 billion (roughly £827 million), and Eastdil Secured has already been rebranded “Eastdil Secured Savills.”
The combination brings together Savills’ global brokerage, leasing and advisory platform — more than 42,000 professionals across 70-plus countries — with Eastdil Secured’s roster of investment-sales, debt-placement and structured-credit specialists, long considered among the most influential dealmakers in institutional real estate. According to Savills’ announcement, the combined firm will now rank as the number two advisory house globally for prime commercial real estate transactions above $100 million.
Deal structure and new leadership
The transaction was funded through a mix of loan finance and newly issued Savills ordinary shares, with the stock component representing approximately 16% of the enlarged group’s share capital. Those shares went to Eastdil Secured’s equity holders, a group that includes Guggenheim, Temasek and Wells Fargo, alongside Eastdil Secured’s leadership team and senior employees — all of whom now hold stakes in Savills Plc in exchange for their prior interests in the investment bank.
Leadership appointments announced back in March are now in effect. Roy H. March becomes Executive Chairman of Eastdil Secured Savills, overseeing client advisory and execution. D. Michael Van Konynenburg steps in as Chief Executive Officer, responsible for day-to-day operations, strategy and key client relationships. James McCaffrey takes the newly created President role, tasked with driving international growth from London. Van Konynenburg and McCaffrey both join the Savills Group Executive Board. The combined investment-banking unit will keep headquarters in New York, Santa Monica and London, folding its 21 existing offices into Savills’ broader network.
What the executives are saying
Simon Shaw, Group Chief Executive of Savills Plc, framed the deal as a client-service play: “Together we provide a stronger, globally connected platform enabling us to deliver for clients at every stage of the property cycle. We are thrilled to welcome like-minded colleagues to the group, and I believe that, together, we have an extraordinary opportunity to fulfill client needs across all real estate sectors and geographies.”
D. Michael Van Konynenburg, now CEO of Eastdil Secured Savills, cast the closing as continuity rather than disruption to the bank’s core practice: “This is an important milestone for our firm. With the transaction complete, we look forward to working alongside our colleagues at Savills to broaden the expertise and resources available to our clients while continuing to deliver the unparalleled capital markets expertise, execution and discretion that have long defined Eastdil Secured. Together, we are well positioned to expand our capabilities and create new opportunities for our clients and our people.”
David Lipson, Savills North America CEO, pointed to cultural fit as much as capability: “By bringing Eastdil Secured Savills leading real estate investment banking capabilities together with our occupier expertise and broader advisory platform, we are creating new opportunities to serve clients across the full real estate lifecycle. Just as important, our firms share a relentlessly client-focused, performance-driven culture grounded in strong advice, disciplined execution and a commitment to delivering the best possible outcomes for our clients.”
What it means
For Savills, the acquisition is a direct answer to a long-standing gap in its North American investment-banking presence, giving the firm a heavyweight capital-markets arm to pair with its occupier and leasing business. For Eastdil Secured — an advisor that shows up on the sell side or financing side of a striking share of major U.S. property trades, from industrial portfolios to regional malls — the deal trades independence for a much larger global distribution network spanning EMEA and Asia Pacific, markets where Eastdil has historically had limited direct reach. The equity swap also means Eastdil’s largest institutional backers, including Wells Fargo, Guggenheim and Temasek, are now aligned shareholders in a London-listed real estate services company rather than owners of a standalone bank.
For clients and competitors, the practical effect may be more consolidation of advisory relationships: borrowers and sellers who used Eastdil for capital markets execution and Savills for leasing or occupier work can now access both under one roof, while rival advisory shops such as JLL, CBRE and Cushman & Wakefield face a newly scaled competitor with deeper cross-sector reach. RealtyWire has separately covered Eastdil Secured’s advisory role on several recent deals, including the $201.5 million sale of Westfield Plaza Bonita and the $1 billion Stonemont-PCCP industrial portfolio acquisition.
What to watch
Savills said it will provide further detail on the transaction and its integration when it reports first-half results for the six months ended June 30, 2026. Investors and market watchers will be looking for early signs of deal-flow overlap between the two firms’ client bases, any departures among Eastdil Secured Savills’ senior bankers now that liquidity events have vested, and whether the enlarged platform accelerates Savills’ long-stated ambition to scale up its North American footprint.
