Realty Capital Securities, a Boston-based brokerage owned by AR Capital, is ending its registration in Massachusetts this week, and shutting down operations across the country. The firm will also pay a $3 million fine to state securities regulators after being charged with faking proxy votes. The closure of Realty Capital will result in close to 150 workers losing their jobs.
Industry analysts point out this decision raises serious questions regarding the recent sale of Realty Capital to PE titan Apollo Global Management, a $6 million deal that was part of a larger $378 million deal between Apollo and AR Capital that fell apart a few weeks ago.
More on closure of Realty Capital
As reported by ValueWalk, the shutdown comes less than a month following the Massachusetts’ securities regulator claiming that Realty Capital employees were faking proxy votes in shareholder elections. votes that were part of the approval of a bigger deal between AR Capital and Apollo.
Realty Capital Securities business was ti distribute real estate investment trust products to investment advisers. It was controlled by AR Capital, a real estate investment trust firm. In a complex corporate structure, the brokerage was owned by RCS Capital, which is currently transitioning to retail financial advisory services..
RCS Capital’s nonexecutive chairman, Mark Auerbach, noted in a statement on Wednesday that the decision to shutter the brokerage operation “was essential to our continuing efforts to create a leaner, more efficient organization.”
Regarding the settlement with Massachusetts securities regulators, RCS Capital’s Andrew Backman, a managing director of investor relations, commented in the statement that the firm was “pleased that this matter has been resolved in an efficient and timely manner.”
Today’s news is just the latest in the saga of AR Capital, one of the largest sponsors of real estate investment trusts in the country. The firm was founded by Nicholas S. Schorsch and William M. Kahane. When the charges were made public back in November, AR Capital announced it would no longer create new investment products and close existing ones to new investors so it could focus on managing the $19 billion in current investments.
The firm noted “regulatory and market uncertainty” was impacting its ability to raise funds.
The closure was first reported by Liz Moyer of The New York Times.
