Private equity giant Warburg Pincus promoted Jeffrey Perlman, current Head of Southeast Asia and Asia-Pacific Real Estate, to President.

Timothy Geithner, former US Treasury Secretary and current President, will become Chairman, while Chip Kaye will remain CEO.

The move comes 17 years after Perlman began leading Warburg Pincus’ real estate business in Asia, with the executive expected to maintain a leading role in the firm’s property strategies while continuing to spend meaningful time in Asia.

Under his leadership the company has invested $8 billion in 60 real estate ventures, with the company having closed on $2.8 billion in equity for its first Asia-wide real estate fund in 2021.

“His (Jeff) proven track record and deep experience, working with entrepreneurs and investors across many geographies in Asia and across both private equity and real estate, make him well-suited to help the firm navigate this more complicated investment landscape,” said Geithner.

In addition to its real estate strategy, Warburg Pincus, which has more than $83 billion in assets under management, has been an active investor in private equity in Asia having put in place an India team led by Vishal Mahadevia, a China division headed by Frank Wei and Saurabh Agarwal as a partner in the Southeast Asia business.

Pointing to the company’s track record of identifying new investment opportunities, Kaye said this is the right time for Warburg Pincus to put in place new leadership.

“We are actively investing out of our latest global flagship fund,” Kaye said. “With significant uncalled capital, we are well-positioned to take advantage of the complex investing environment that plays to our strengths as a firm.”

Warburg had raised $15.4 billion for its latest flagship buyout fund at the start of this year, putting it within a whisker of its $16 billion goal.

The fund is already the biggest in the firm’s history, eclipsing the $15.1 billion it amassed for Private Equity X at the height of the last buyout boom in 2007.