CBRE Group

CBRE traces its UK business to 1773, when William Ellis established his business at 126 Fenchurch Street in London as an upholder, appraiser and undertaker. His nephew Richard took over in 1809 and grew the company into the leading property services firm in the UK.⁠[1]

CBRE’s U.S. roots lie in a company founded in San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake.⁠[2]

In 1989, employees and third-party investors acquired the company’s operations to form CB Commercial, which went public in 1996. In 1998 the company, then CB Commercial Real Estate Services Group, expanded globally by acquiring REI Limited.⁠[2]

On February 20, 2001, an affiliate of Blum Capital Partners formed the current listed company as a Delaware corporation.⁠[3]

In July 2003, CB Richard Ellis Services and Insignia Financial Group, Inc. were brought together.⁠[3]

The company completed the initial public offering of its common stock in June 2004.⁠[4]

On February 22, 2005, CEO Ray Wirta announced he would step down after the June 2 annual meeting, to be succeeded by Brett White.⁠[3]

CB Richard Ellis Group joined the S&P 500S&P 500The S&P 500 is a U.S. large-cap equity index compiled by S&P Dow Jones Indices. It includes 500 leading companies, covers about 80% of available market capitalization and is described by S&P DJI as “widely regarded as the best single gauge of large-cap U.S. equities.”Open the full entry after the close on November 9, 2006, replacing Fisher Scientific International, which was being acquired by another constituent, instead of BellSouth Corp. as originally indicated.⁠[5]

It became the first commercial real estate services company included in the S&P 500. Brett White, president and CEO, said, “We are pleased to be recognized among the premier business services companies in the U.S.”⁠[4][6]

On December 20, 2006, CB Richard Ellis Group completed its acquisition of Trammell Crow Company for $49.51 per share in cash, a deal valued at approximately $2.2 billion. The combined company had pro forma 2006 revenues of about $4.4 billion and about 21,000 employees. Brett White said, “This transaction marks a significant milestone in our Company’s 100-year history.”⁠[7]

On October 3, 2011, CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. changed its name to CBRE Group, Inc., effective immediately, aligning the corporate name with the CBRE brand, while the ticker remained CBG. Brett White said, “This change is the natural next step in the evolution of our corporate identity.”⁠[8]

On May 8, 2012, CBRE Group announced a CEO succession plan under which Brett White would retire as CEO effective December 31, 2012 and remain on the board, to be succeeded by President Robert Sulentic.⁠[9]

In November 2012 the handover was brought forward: White’s retirement took effect at midnight on November 30, 2012, and Sulentic became CEO effective December 1, 2012.⁠[10]

On September 1, 2015, CBRE, Inc. completed its acquisition of the Global WorkPlace Solutions business of Johnson Controls, Inc. for $1.475 billion in cash plus about $36 million in net adjustments for working capital and other items, subject to post-closing adjustments.⁠[11]

On March 8, 2018, CBRE Group announced that its New York Stock Exchange ticker symbol would change from CBG to CBRE, with trading under the new symbol beginning on March 19, 2018.⁠[12]

In October 2020, CBRE began moving its headquarters from Los Angeles to Dallas, though it was not expected to move a significant number of jobs. CEO Robert Sulentic already had an office in Dallas and split his time between the two cities.⁠[13]

On November 2, 2021, CBRE acquired a 60% interest in UK-based Turner & Townsend and formed a strategic partnership with it, paying approximately £960 million ($1.3 billion) in cash at a valuation of about £1.6 billion. A partnership structure holds the remaining 40%. Founded in 1946, Turner & Townsend had more than 7,000 professionals serving clients in 46 countries.⁠[14]

On September 19, 2023, the SEC charged CBRE, Inc. with violating its whistleblower protection rule: from 2011 to 2022 the company conditioned separation pay on releases attesting that employees had not filed complaints with any federal agency. Without admitting or denying the findings, CBRE agreed to a $375,000 penalty and had contacted more than 800 signers about their rights.⁠[15]

On January 3, 2025, CBRE completed the combination of its project management business with Turner & Townsend, its majority-owned subsidiary, owning 70% of the combined business, and began reporting Project Management as a standalone segment that year.⁠[16]

On January 14, 2025, CBRE announced it would acquire the rest of flexible workplace operator Industrious. CBRE already held an approximately 40% equity interest and a $100 million convertible note, and would pay about $400 million for the remaining equity. It also created a Building Operations & Experience segment led by Industrious co-founder and CEO Jamie Hodari.⁠[17]

During the fourth quarter of 2025, CBRE acquired Pearce Services, LLC, a provider of advanced technical services.⁠[18]

As of December 31, 2025, CBRE had more than 155,000 employees worldwide, including Turner & Townsend employees, and four segments: Advisory Services, Building Operations & Experience, Project Management and Real Estate Investments.⁠[19]

On February 12, 2026, CBRE released full-year 2025 results: revenue rose 13% to $40.6 billion (2024: $35.8 billion), GAAP net income was $1,157 million (2024: $968 million) and GAAP diluted earnings per share were $3.85.⁠[18]