S&P could cut Cantor Fitzgerald

S&P said it placed the BBB- issuer credit and senior unsecured debt ratings on Cantor Fitzgerald LP. and its affiliates BGC Partners Inc. and GFI Group Inc. on CreditWatch with negative implications.

According to the agency, Cantor announced that it is reorganizing its commercial real estate businesses, including the buyout of its outside investors in Cantor Commercial Real Estate Co. LP (CCRE) and selling its affiliate Berkeley Point Financial LLC to affiliate BGC, to be combined for an eventual IPO with BGC's commercial real estate services business, Newmark Knight Frank.

“The CreditWatch placement reflects our belief that while Cantor is consolidating its commercial real estate operations in preparation for an IPO in the fourth quarter, the buyout of some of CCRE's outside investors has reduced the firm's consolidated tangible equity,” S&P said in a news release.

“While this has been partially offset by the raising of $150 million of equity from other partners, the consolidated risk-adjusted capital (RAC) ratio has fallen to 5.6%, below the level supportive of the current capital assessment and rating.”

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.