Cantor Fitzgerald subsidiary buys part of Lew Ranieri business

Firm seeks to extend reach into "middle market" of commercial property lending

From left: Lew Ranieri and Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick
From left: Lew Ranieri and Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick

Cantor Fitzgerald Real Estate L.P. has agreed to buy a commercial mortgage unit of New York-based Ranieri Real Estate Partners, the company founded by famed mortgage security innovator Lew Ranieri.

The unit, RREP Recovery Partners Manager LLC, manages a $200 million fund that invests in distressed real estate assets. Fromer Deutsche Bank AG executives Jon Vaccaro and Eric Schwartz head up the unit.

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The parties did not disclose the terms of the deal, but a spokesperson for parent company Cantor Fitzgerald told Bloomberg News that the transaction will see two well-known real estate finance veterans join the company and extend the firm’s reach into the “middle market” of commercial property lending. The spokesperson noted that RREP’s average loan volume is $1 million.

Plans for the $200 million fund have not been finalized, but Cantor Fitzgerald and RREP Recovery Partners have discussed forming a mortgage real estate investment trust, Vaccaro told Bloomberg. [Bloomberg News]Tom DiChristopher