Christopher (“Topher”) Merrill is Global CEO, Harrison Street Asset Management and serves as Chairman of the Board and the Investment and Executive Committees of the firm. Prior to co-founding Harrison Street, Christopher was a partner, owner and managing director of a large U.S. pension fund advisory firm where he developed the firm's presence in Europe, creating the first real estate funds exclusively targeting Central Europe, which became one of the top 10 performing global funds between 1996-2000.
Christopher was selected for the prestigious 2025 Horatio Alger Award and named 2022 Global Industry Figure of the Year by Private Equity Real Estate (PERE). He earned his MBA in the evening from the CASS School of Business in London, England.