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Housing 21 installs former investment banker as new chair
Retirement and extra-care specialist Housing 21 has appointed a former investment banker as its new chair.
Gurpreet Dehal, who is the new to the sector and has worked for Merrill Lynch and Credit Suisse, took up the role at the 23,300-home landlord at the start of this month.
Mr Dehal has taken the reins from Michael McDonagh, chief executive of PA Housing, who has been filling in as Housing 21’s interim chair.
Mr McDonagh stepped up last October after former permanent chair, Stephen Hughes, resigned having served his maximum term as a board member.
Since then Housing 21 has also carried out an executive shake-up.
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Mr Dehal has wide-ranging experience, including non-executive roles at the Ministry of Defence and Valuation Office Agency. Among his current roles, he is chair of the University of Derby.
He worked for Merrill Lynch between 2006 and 2009, then for Credit Suisse for five years up until 2014, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Mr Dehal said he was “absolutely delighted” to take the role at Housing 21. He added: “The organisation is absolutely committed to supporting residents and delivering inclusive communities, and I am passionate that residents receive an excellent experience.”
His appointment continues a trend of social landlords recruiting their senior staff from the banking sector.
Hyde appointed former Deutsche Bank executive Peter Denton as its finance boss, before promoting him to chief executive in 2019. He left to head up Homes England in 2021.
Places for People installed ex-Bank of America executive Greg Reed as its chief executive in 2021. And in 2022, Notting Hill Genesis appointed Patrick Franco, who spent his early career at Credit Suisse, as its chief executive.
Bruce Moore, chief executive of Housing 21, added: “For Gurpreet, this appointment represents a new opportunity in a new sector while for us, it is a chance to gain fresh perspective and insight into how we continue to improve upon our achievements and grow the organisation without losing sight of the current and future needs of our residents.”
Last August, Housing 21 abandoned a proposed merger with smaller landlord The ExtraCare Charitable Trust. Prior to the merger being called off, Standard & Poor’s said it would weaken the creditworthiness of the combined group.
In its last fullyear, Housing 21 reported a surplus of £9.7m on turnover of £251.5m after a 16% jump in operating costs.
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