Having the vantage point of leading Morgan Stanley but also being removed from the center of the financial ruin, perched at private equity firm Continental Investors, Purcell shared lots of his insights on the markets with Steve Forbes.

FORBES: Phil Purcell's Words Of Wisdom

Morgan Stanley's effort represents one of the first by a major Wall Street bank to challenge the private-equity giants that recently have dominated private fundraising in the real-estate world.

WSJ: Morgan Stanley Gears Up for New Property Fund