Jay DeWaltoff has joined DWS, a global asset manager, as head of U.S. real estate debt to accelerate the growth of the firm’s real estate credit business and expand its global private credit platform, DWS announced yesterday.

DeWaltoff, who will be in the New York City office, joined DWS from J.P. Morgan Asset Management, where he was head of the Commercial Mortgage Loan Group within its alternatives platform.

At J.P. Morgan Asset Management, DeWaltoff led the group in building a commercial mortgage lending platform, growing commitments from less than $2 billion to more than $13 billion. He has also held roles at Citigroup Global Markets and Cushman & Wakefield.

Also joining from J.P. Morgan Asset Management are Daniel Sang, Catherine Millane and Khrystyna Bazlyak, who will strengthen of DWS’s existing real estate credit team, DWS said.

“We are seeing increased opportunities in the debt market due to the macroeconomic and regulatory environments which should deliver attractive risk-adjusted return potential to investors,” Todd Henderson, co-global head of real estate and head of real estate for the Americas, said in a statement. “We are delighted to welcome Jay to the team as we deepen our commitment to our clients in the alternatives sector and look to take advantage of improving fundamentals in the real estate sector to generate above-average returns across the risk spectrum in the asset class.”

“I am pleased to be joining DWS during such a pivotal time for the real estate market. DWS’ brand in the real estate ecosystem, combined with its equity track record, and deep institutional relationships, provides a strong jumping-off point for me and the team to help drive the business forward,” DeWaltoff said in a statement.