SREF

What SREF does

SREF (Sustainable Real Estate Forum), operating as The Sustainable Real Estate Forum LTD, is a UK-based private company founded in 2025 that runs an enterprise B2B platform convening senior practitioners at institutional investors, asset managers, and advisory firms around ESG and sustainable real-asset intelligence. Its core offering combines institutional membership (annual subscription from £3,500 in Year 1 to £7,999 from Year 3), invite-only roundtables under Chatham House rules, co-authored whitepapers (£25k contributor / £50k project lead) and validated case studies (£10k), tiered event sponsorship (£35k country / £100k global), and bespoke event production (£25k-£100k). Content is editorially independent, reviewed by an FT editor before publication, and distributed simultaneously through partner channels including RICS (134,000+ members), GRESB ($8.8T AUM network), Immobilien Zeitung (187,000+ readers), and Property Week (150,000+ monthly visitors), reaching an aggregated network of 470,000+ institutional professionals.

The underlying technology is a knowledge aggregation and distribution platform rather than a software product: SREF does not appear to own proprietary AI/ML models or a data flywheel, instead operating curated publishing workflows, partner-mediated distribution, and an event production function. Its GTM motion is enterprise field sales layered with event-driven engagement, channel partner distribution, and community-led convening across six annual invite-only events in Cannes, London, Luxembourg, New York, Frankfurt, and a December dinner. The platform is positioned as vendor-neutral by design, with strict seniority thresholds for roundtables and no vendor sales presentations at events.

Commercial activity is concentrated in Europe (UK, France, Germany, Luxembourg) and North America (US), with recent expansion signals into additional verticals (Data Centres, Smart Infrastructure, Technology & AI) and a forthcoming Real Estate Think Tank product. The company is led by CEO and Founder Peter Panayi (2025 UK PropTech Association Future Leader Award) with Cécile Babcock joining as Principal Advisor for Global Investment in March 2026. No funding rounds, headcount, or revenue figures are publicly disclosed; the business is presently early-stage post its March 2026 MIPIM launch.

Name

SREF

Legal name

The Sustainable Real Estate Forum LTD

Website

https://sustainablerealestateforum.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Short description

SREF (Sustainable Real Estate Forum) is a UK-based B2B platform that convenes institutional investors, asset managers, and ESG leads through paid membership, editorially independent research, and invite-only events across Europe and North America.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

City Of London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Institutional Membership: Annual membership program for institutional investors, asset managers, and ESG practitioners. Provides roundtable access, whitepaper library, peer network, and monthly intelligence newsletter. Standard rate increases from £3,500 in Year 1 to £7,999 in Year 3.
2. Event Sponsorship: Sponsorship packages for SREF events including Global Sponsorship (£100k/year), Country Sponsorship (£35k/year), and bespoke event hosting (£25k-£100k per event). Provides brand visibility, attendee list access, and curated LP/GP meetings.
3. Research Publication: Co-authored whitepapers with global institutions (RICS, GRESB, INREV) at £25k contributor level and £50k project lead level. Validated case studies at £10k. Content packages providing 10 upload credits annually for £3,500/year.
4. Content Distribution Services: Distribution of research through partner media channels achieving 250+ media mentions per whitepaper launch. Includes press release distributions and partner channel features.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

SREF operates an institutional membership platform for senior practitioners in sustainable real assets, offering access to exclusive roundtables, a co-authored whitepaper library, peer networking, and a monthly curated intelligence newsletter. It also produces invite-only events across Europe and North America, sells event sponsorship packages, and offers paid research publication services including whitepaper co-authorship and independently validated case studies distributed through partner networks including RICS, GRESB, Immobilien Zeitung, and Property Week.

Product overview

SREF (Sustainable Real Estate Forum) is a thought leadership and professional networking platform for sustainable real assets. The company operates a multi-tiered offering comprising an institutional membership program (核心产品) that provides access to exclusive roundtables, research publications, and peer networking; event sponsorship and bespoke event production services for brands seeking visibility with institutional investors; and whitepaper/case study publishing that distributes co-authored research through partner channels including RICS (134,000+ members), GRESB ($8.8T AUM network), Immobilien Zeitung (187,000+ readers), and Property Week. The platform convenes senior practitioners at institutional funds, asset managers, and advisory firms through editorially independent research, invite-only events, and a vendor-neutral peer network.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SREF Institutional Membership Annual membership program providing senior practitioners at institutional funds, asset managers, ESG leads, and advisory firms with access to curated research, invite-only roundtables under Chatham House rules, a whitepaper library, peer networking, a searchable fund and manager directory, and a monthly curated intelligence newsletter.
• Whitepaper Publishing Service Co-authored research papers with 2-5 world-leading institutions (RICS, GRESB, INREV), FT-editor reviewed, with a ~2-month timeline and partner-channel distribution achieving 250+ media mentions per launch. Available as Contributor or Project Lead packages.
• Validated Case Study Publishing 7-10 page client-perspective case studies written and independently validated by the SREF editorial team, distributed with a press release and media campaign as research rather than marketing content.
• Event Sponsorship Packages Tiered sponsorship offerings including Country Sponsorship (£35,000/year for single market presence) and Global Sponsorship (£100,000/year for year-round logo presence across all 6 events), each including website banners, editorial interviews, thought leadership blogs, attendee list access, and curated LP/GP meetings.
• Bespoke Event Production Invite-only C-suite forums (~40 guests) and flagship conferences (50-200+ guests) produced end-to-end by SREF, including panel curation, speaker management, venue sourcing, press, and social amplification.
• SREF Invite-Only Roundtable and Summit Series Calendar of 6 invite-only events annually across Europe and North America (MIPIM Cannes, London, Luxembourg, New York, Frankfurt, December dinner) with strict seniority thresholds and Chatham House rules, providing deep networking among institutional stakeholders.

Quantifiable outcome

• 250+ media mentions per whitepaper launch
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 March 2026RICS serves as Global Knowledge Partner to SREF. RICS has 134,000+ members in 147 countries and provides global professional standards for real estate. The partnership was unveiled at an exclusive reception during MIPIM in Cannes, with RICS embedding standards for sustainable housing and carbon measurement into SREF's research initiatives.
• Immobilien ZeitungcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 30 March 2026Germany's leading real estate trade publication with 187,000+ professional readers. Immobilien Zeitung partners with SREF to unite UK and German real estate ecosystems and provide distribution for sustainability insights into the DACH institutional market.
• GRESBcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGRESB covers $8.8T in assessed assets across 6,000+ organisations, with 170+ pension funds and insurers using GRESB as their sustainability benchmark. GRESB serves as an association partner providing access to institutional ESG-focused practitioners.
• Property WeekcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerUK's leading real estate trade press with 150,000+ unique visitors per month. Property Week provides media distribution for SREF content in the UK market, covering research as editorial rather than advertising.
• INREVcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean Association for Investors in Non-Listed Real Estate Vehicles. INREV contributes research and expertise on integrating environmental considerations in real estate underwriting, with SREF providing distribution channel to institutional market.
• ALFIcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociation of the Luxembourg Fund Industry. ALFI partners with SREF to explore ESG fund governance, cross-border structuring, and digital tools improving transparency in asset management.
• OptimlcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProptech company that launched its Real Estate Decision Intelligence (REDI) product at SREF's MIPIM launch event. Optiml positions REDI as a new benchmark for financial-grade, data-driven investment and risk management in real estate. Optiml closed an €8 million seed round and partnered with Scaler for end-to-end real estate decision intelligence.
• GreenlabminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent partner featured at SREF Launch Event in Cannes during MIPIM 2026. Appears in speaker and partner listings for the event.
• ScalercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Optiml to deliver end-to-end Real Estate Decision Intelligence for institutional portfolios. Scaler and Optiml partnership enables comprehensive data-driven decision-making across real estate investments.
• CatellaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEvent partner featured at SREF Launch Event in Cannes during MIPIM 2026. European proptech/advisory firm participating in SREF event ecosystem.
• WestbridgeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerReal estate investment firm featured as event partner at SREF Launch Event in Cannes. Westbridge also appears in SREF case studies for portfolio analysis.
• ArcadiscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal design and consultancy for natural and built assets. Arcadis contributes featured content on climate resilience including modifying Manhattan's shoreline for climate resilience and hydrodynamic modeling. Featured in SREF's industry studies section.
• AedifioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDigital transformation platform for existing buildings. Featured in SREF's featured articles section covering how institutional owners can leverage digital transformation for long-term portfolio resilience.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Urban Land Institute (ULI): ULI is a longstanding, global real estate research and member-driven organization that convenes senior practitioners through reports, events and policy work. SREF explicitly references ULI membership as part of its community, making it the closest large-scale incumbents with overlapping ESG agenda.
• PEI Media: PEI Media operates multiple subscription research, events and networking brands across private equity and real estate (e.g., PERE, Real Estate Capital, Infrastructure Investor). It is comparable to SREF as a parent of competing B2B platforms targeting the same institutional real estate allocator audience.
• MIPIM (Reed Midem): MIPIM, operated by Reed Midem, runs the largest annual global real estate conference (Cannes) and a portfolio of regional events. SREF runs its own ESG-focused events at MIPIM and in parallel venues, making MIPIM both a partner venue and a competing events platform.
• RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors): RICS is the global professional body for chartered surveyors with 134k+ members across 147 countries and runs its own research, standards and events. SREF's flagship Global Knowledge Partner is also a direct peer in ESG standards-setting, member services and event programming.
• CoreNet Global: CoreNet Global is a member association for corporate real estate professionals, offering research, events and networking globally. Comparable to SREF in its B2B association model targeting senior real estate decision-makers, with broader corporate real estate focus vs. SREF's ESG emphasis.

Direct peers

• Bisnow: Bisnow is a B2B real estate media and events platform producing newsletters, content, and large commercial real estate events across the US and Europe. Closely comparable to SREF in combining commercial real estate content, sponsored events, and a newsletter-driven audience model.
• INREV: INREV is the European Association for Investors in Non-Listed Real Estate Vehicles, providing research, standards and events for institutional real estate investors. It is both a SREF partner and a direct peer in ESG research, member services and event programming.
• GRESB: GRESB is the dominant ESG benchmarking body for real assets, covering $8.8T AUM across 6,000+ organizations. While it is also a SREF partner, its own research, events and member network directly overlap with SREF's offering, making it the most direct functional competitor and content incumbent.
• PERE (Private Equity Real Estate) Network: PERE, run by PEI Media, is a subscription-based B2B media, research and events network for institutional real estate investors. Closely comparable to SREF in its combination of paid membership, research publications, and invite-only events for senior real estate allocators, though its focus is broader than ESG specifically.

Emerging players

• Climate Bonds Initiative: Climate Bonds Initiative is an NGO focused on sustainable finance standards and market development, including real estate and infrastructure. Comparable to SREF as a stakeholder in ESG/sustainable real assets research and convening, though it is standards-focused rather than event-driven.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SREF