National Housing Bank Names Four to Exec Team

Four senior leaders with extensive investment and real estate expertise are to join the National Housing Bank, a Homes England company.

They have been appointed to executive roles at the newly launched Public Finance Institution, which is focused on accelerating the delivery of new homes and communities across England through crowding in over £50 billion of private capital to deliver more than 500,000 homes.

The bank, which launched in April 2026, has confirmed the following appointments and posts following a rigorous interview process:

Steve Willingham, Executive Director, Debt.

Currently Head of Global Investment Partnerships - Debt at DRC Savills Investment Management, Steve has more than 35 years of experience in real estate finance, including as Global Head of Real Estate Finance for HSBC in London and Hong Kong and as a Managing Director at Blackrock and Merrill Lynch. He brings deep expertise across debt, structured finance and global capital markets.

Steve said:

I am delighted to be joining the National Housing Bank as part of the senior leadership team tasked with accelerating housing delivery across England, building on the groundwork and momentum that has been created already. This is a unique opportunity to make a difference in a nationally important field.

Jennifer Murray, Executive Director, Equity.

Jennifer is currently Director of Products, Equity and Partnerships for Homes England and the National Housing Bank. She has more than 25 years of experience in real estate investment, fund management, and institutional partnerships. Since joining Homes England in 2018, Jennifer has held a number of senior roles, including Assistant Director, Partnerships & Equity, and Head of Institutional Investment. Prior to joining Homes England, she held various senior property fund management roles at Tesco Pension Investment and Schroders.

Jennifer said:

I originally joined Homes England because I believe firmly in the virtuous circle that pension fund and insurance investment in housing can create. Along the way we have built both a team and an investment platform that aligns financial innovation with purpose, delivering outcomes that benefit investors, residents, and society alike. It's a privilege to continue that mission for the National Housing Bank.

Barry Fowler, Executive Director, Guarantees.

Bringing significant experience in real estate finance and investment, Barry has held senior leadership roles at Aviva Investors, including Director, Insurance & Investment Solutions and Managing Director, Alternative Income, Real Assets, where he was responsible for developing and delivering investment strategies across real asset classes. Prior to Aviva he was Head of Corporate Real Estate at Lloyds Banking Group.

Barry said:

This is a rare opportunity to apply my experience in structured investment leadership to an institution with the scale and ambition to genuinely shift outcomes in the housing market.

Conan McKenzie, Chief Investment Officer.

Currently a Managing Director and portfolio manager at BlackRock, Conan has extensive experience in multi-asset investing and portfolio construction. He specialises in managing diversified strategies which blend multiple asset classes to achieve target outcomes. He has also been involved in illiquid and alternative investments for more than a decade, leading a number of large investments into infrastructure and real estate. He has been with BlackRock since 2011, initially joining as a research analyst within the Multi-Asset Strategies division.

Conan said:

We have an incredible opportunity to use our large capital base to make a significant positive impact on housing delivery, along with a positive financial return for the taxpayer. A decent, stable place to call home is the foundation that lets people flourish, and it's a privilege to use the tools of investment to deliver that for more and more people.

Powered by Homes England expertise, the bank aims to support the delivery of more than 500,000 homes and a raft of major regeneration and mixed-use schemes, alongside unlocking more than £53 billion of private investment over the next ten years.

National Housing Bank CEO, Simon Century, said:

I am delighted we have secured the formidable skills, knowledge and experience that Steve, Jennifer, Barry and Conan bring as leaders in their own right - and excited to come together as a collective to ensure the bank, together with Homes England colleagues, builds on early successes to achieve its aims at pace and with maximum effect.

Like all colleagues working for this new institution and the broader agency, we are united by a strong, purpose-driven mission to accelerate the delivery of new homes and regenerated places people want and need. These appointments mean we are in a strong position to achieve that and more, and I am looking forward to working with them as part of an outstanding team.

National Housing Bank Chair, Peter Vernon, said:

I am pleased to see four highly talented, experienced individuals coming together to become key leaders within the bank, which has already hit the ground running with a clear, mission-driven focus that has yielded positive, early results.

The board will continue to provide support, strong governance and guidance to Simon and his team as it takes full shape to ensure the bank continues to deliver effectively and at pace for the good of places and communities across the country.

The new appointees are expected to take up their roles by the end of September.