Crain's New York Business by crains-new-york-business

ASKED & ANSWERED Building Congress chair on the need for federal aid

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SUBWAY STOP Proximity to transit no longer essential for prospective renters CRAINSNEWYORK.COM

DECEMBER 7, 2020

PAGE 3 ECONOMY

Companies have found new ways to connect with employees now that most are working from home Page 11

Recovery hobbled as Covid cases rise, aid uncertain Fed shows New York lags the rest of the U.S. in economic rebound BY RYAN DEFFENBAUGH

COURTESY OF CLUNE CONSTRUCTION

rise in Covid-19 cases and a lack of federal financial support have hobbled New York’s recovery, which already lags the rest of the country’s, Federal Reserve Bank of New York officials warned last week. John Williams, president of the New York Fed, said both the city and the nation are still suffering from a deep recession, despite the “dramatic” recovery boosted by the $2 trillion Cares Act passed in the spring. “One of the big question marks about the economic recovery is how big the effects will be from this very large wave of Covid cases, along with the expiration or diminishment of fiscal support,” Williams said. The warning comes as Congress remains deadlocked on a new relief package. Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer on Dec. 2 offered a slimmed-down stimulus proposal that would allocate $908 billion for struggling small businesses and state and local governments as well as provide $300 extra in unemployment benefits. The offer showed Democrats coming down from their initial goal for a $2 trillion aid package. “Many family budgets and small businesses are at their breaking See FEDERAL on page 4

NEWSPAPER

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HEALTH CARE

State taxes on health insurance to top $5.5 billion this year: report

n annual report by the New York State Conference of Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans released last week shows that state taxes on health insurance are estimated to cost privately insured New Yorkers more than $5.5 billion in 2020, increasing premiums by between 6% and 9%. New York imposes several taxes on employers and individuals who buy private health insurance coverage, and the levies are paid by consumers and included in their pre-

charge created by the Health Care Reform Act of 1996 that is collected from health plans in the form of a sales tax on certain hospital-based services. The current rate of the surcharge is 9.63%, up from 8.18% in 1997. An additional roughly $1.1 billion comes from the covered lives assessment, which is an annual flat surcharge on all privately insured people in the state. Health plans are assessed according to the number of people they cover. A 1.75% tax applied to premiums paid by those with commercial health insurance policies amounts to about $509 million this year, designated for the state treasury’s general fund, NYSCOP noted. And an assessment on all licensed insurers is estimated to be about $143 million, earmarked to finance the Department of Financial Services. Taxes on private health insurance take in the third-highest amount in the state, after personal income taxes—which garner $49 billion—and sales taxes—$12 billion—NYSCOP noted. And among

“ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE HEALTH COVERAGE IS MORE CRITICAL THAN EVER” miums, NYSCOP noted in releasing the report. The organization cited the state departments of Financial Services and Health in detailing the dollar amount. Of the almost $5.6 billion, about $3.9 billion is the result of a sur-

business taxes levied by the state, those imposed on the privately insured are the single largest. “As we continue the battle against Covid-19, access to affordable health coverage is more critical than ever,” said Leanne Politi, executive director of communications for NYSCOP, in a statement. “New Yorkers should not be burdened with increasing premiums as a result of higher state taxes.”

Budget gap A Siena College poll of registered voters released in September found that nearly 80% of New Yorkers who responded rejected the idea of increasing health insurance taxes to close the state budget gap, Crain’s previously reported. The results showed that 77% of respondents opposed higher taxes on health insurance, and nearly a third of the 16% who supported them would prefer a different approach if it meant increasing what they pay for insurance. Seventynine percent of respondents said they felt consumers should not have to pay more for health insurance in order to close the state’s budget deficit.

ISTOCK

BY JENNIFER HENDERSON

The increase in premiums of between 6% and 9% noted by NYSCOP covers all health insurance markets, which include large-group and self-insured plans. In August the state Department of Financial Services said it would allow insurers selling health plans to individuals to raise their rates by only 1.8% on average for 2021, marking the lowest increase for individuals in a decade. As for smallgroup plans, the department approved a 4.2% rate increase.

State expects enough doses of Pfizer vaccine by Dec. 15 to treat 170,000

y Dec. 15 the state expects to receive enough doses of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine to immunize 170,000 New Yorkers, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced last Wednesday. The plan hinges on the assumption that Pfizer’s vaccine, which was submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Nov. 20, will receive its emergency-use authorization in the next few days. The first wave of vaccinations would include health care workers and nursing home residents, in line with recommendations outlined by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s advisory committee on immunization practices, Cuomo said. The state is expected to receive more doses of Pfizer’s vaccine—as well as Moderna’s vaccine—later this month, the governor added. Moderna filed for emergencyuse authorization Nov. 30. Both pharmaceutical companies’ options showed promising results in clinical trials. The number of Moderna doses the state will receive is yet to be determined, Cuomo said. Cuomo named Larry Schwartz, once secretary to Gov. David Patter-

son, to lead the state’s vaccination efforts. Linda Lacewell, superintendent of the state Department of Financial Services, and Simonida Subotic, deputy secretary of economic development, will join the team overseeing the initiative, Cuomo added. “This is going to be the largest government operation undertaken since World War II,” he said. To keep the public updated on distribution efforts, Cuomo said, scheduled briefings will be held each Monday, Wednesday and Friday. FLICKR/ GOVERNORANDREWCUOMO

BY SHUAN SIM

Nursing home challenges Nursing home and health care leaders lauded the governor for prioritizing nursing home residents and staff for vaccination. However, the number of workers and residents who may decline or be unable to take the vaccine will create challenges. “Hopefully, the vaccines will restore public confidence in sending relatives to nursing homes and visiting them there as well as for staff to work in these facilities,” said Mi-

chael Balboni, executive director of the Greater New York Health Care Facilities Association, a nonprofit serving the needs of long-termcare organizations. With nursing home residents disproportionately affected by the virus, prioritizing them will have an outsize effect on protecting not just those within the facilities but the greater community as well, said Stephen Hanse, president and CEO of the New York State Health Facilities Association, which represents adult care and assisted-living facilities in the state. In addition to family members entering the homes for visits, staff travel back and forth

into the surrounding neighborhoods, possibly unknowingly having been exposed to the virus, he noted. A big question remains about what to do with staff members and residents who refuse to take the vaccine or are unable to do so because of medical reasons. Nursing home residents who test positive for Covid-19 are grouped together, and perhaps a similar approach could be adopted for individuals based on their vaccination status, Hanse said. A statewide policy requires nursing home staff who are not vaccinated for the flu to always wear protective equipment when interacting with residents, noted Neil Heyman, president of the Southern New York Association, an organization representing long-term-care facilities in the city, Long Island and Westchester County. However, Covid-19 is more infectious and complicated than the flu, and further guidance from the state and medical experts will be needed to find an effective solution for individuals who remain unvaccinated, he said. ■

As the state’s leaders consider options to close the growing deficit caused by the pandemic, they should avoid measures that will affect the cost of care, Politi cautioned. NYSCOP is a partnership of New York Blue Cross Blue Shield Plans, including Excellus Blue Cross Blue Shield, Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield and Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield HealthPlus. Combined, the plans provide health insurance coverage to 6 million enrollees. ■

WEBCAST CALLOUT

DEC. 16 POLITICAL SAVANTS HANDICAP THE CITYWIDE ELECTIONS The next mayor will face a fiscal crisis not seen in 40 years. More than half the City Council will turn over due to term limits. And a growing progressive movement has thwarted large projects such as Amazon’s HQ2. Join Crain’s on Dec. 16, when political pundits George Arzt, Monica Klein and Yvette Buckner will discuss how the city’s elections will shape up and the impact on business.

VIRTUAL EVENT Time: 4 to 5 p.m. CrainsNewYork.com/DecBusinessForum

Vol. 36, No. 42, December 7, 2020—Crain’s New York Business (ISSN 8756-789X) is published weekly, except for bimonthly in January, July and August and the last issue in December, by Crain Communications Inc., 685 Third Ave., New York, NY 10017. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY, and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to: Crain’s New York Business, Circulation Department, PO Box 433279, Palm Coast, FL 32143-9681. For subscriber service: call 877-824-9379; fax 313-446-6777. $3.00 a copy; $129.00 per year. (GST No. 13676-0444-RT) ©Entire contents copyright 2020 by Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved. 2 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

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RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE

BUCK ENNIS

20 BLOCKS FROM THE SUBWAY? THAT’S OK Renters are no longer prioritizing proximity to a transit stop when looking for a home, brokers say BY EDDIE SMALL

ne question brokers typically field when showing a New York apartment is, “Where’s the nearest subway stop?” Easy access to the train has traditionally been one of the main selling points for homes near transit hubs. Brokers would have to try to play up other benefits of living in places farther from the subway. But that was before Covid-19 came along to virtually eliminate work commutes and curtail the services the Metropolitan Transportation Authority is able to offer. The subway has stopped running from 1 to 5 a.m., and officials have warned of service cuts of up to 40% if the MTA does not receive federal funds. Although living near the train is still appealing, especially for potential buyers aiming to stay in the city long term, it’s no longer a primary concern, real estate agents say. “My listing at 440 Atlantic Ave. is located within a few minutes of nearly every major subway line in Brooklyn, not to mention the LIRR station and many bus lines,” Compass agent Jamie Fedorko told Crain’s. “Not a single person has made mention of this or asked a question about it. Nor have they been particularly interested as I tell them about all of the access to transportation during showings.” The flip side of the trend has taken hold at Fedorko’s Degraw Street listing in Brooklyn’s Columbia Street waterfront district, a neighborhood that does not boast good subway ac-

cess. Rather than asking Fedorko rameters by up to 10 blocks given train last year for repairs to the Caabout the subway, people touring that they are not currently commut- narsie Tunnel. The shutdown was the townhouse have instead been ing. Some have opted to get electric avoided when Gov. Andrew Cuomo focused on parking options. scooters or Citi Bike subscriptions to announced a plan in January that “I’m hearing a lot of stories where compensate for the extra distance limited L service instead. “I would say that the L train hurt people want to know where the clos- from mass transit. est garage is rather than the closest Buyers are more likely than rent- Williamsburg more than Covid subway stop,” he said. “It’s an in- ers to prioritize subway access, as did—which is crazy,” Lewis said. creasingly common component of they generally want to make a more “But when you remove transportawhat we’re doing now.” permanent commitment to the city, tion fully to and from a location, Searches for homes with parking said Warner Lewis, a Brown Harris people just say, full stop, ‘I will not were up every month from March Stevens agent. Renters who plan to live there,’ whereas during Covid, through October compared to last stay in their current apartment for they will live there.” year, according to Brown Harris Ste- only a few years are more inclined to New York rents have dropped alvens data. The peak occurred in take a good deal on a place without most across the board since the onJune, when 658 people set of the pandemic, but searched its city listings for northwestern Queens has homes with parking, com- “PEOPLE WANT TO KNOW WHERE THE been hit hard, in part due to pared with 88 in June 2019. decline in commuting, CLOSEST GARAGE IS RATHER THAN the The trend just showed its said Jonathan Miller, Miller first sign of potentially reSamuel CEO. THE CLOSEST SUBWAY STOP” versing, as 173 people “It’s one subway stop searched the site for homes from Midtown, and sudwith parking last month compared great transit access now, knowing denly during this Covid era, that bewith 434 in November 2019. they could look for one closer to the comes significantly less important simply because of remote work,” subway during their next move. Buyers vs. renters “The buyers that I have, they are Miller said. “And yet the whole The lessening importance of sub- still very focused on ‘My job is here, premise of it is it’s an extension of way access has opened up renters to and I want to make sure that I’m Manhattan.” Net effective median rent in the more parts of the city, multiple near a train line to get to work,’ beagents said. Some of the biggest cause they have a much longer view- area dropped 15.4% year over year year-over-year spikes in demand for point,” Lewis said. “For renters, the in October, falling to $2,414—the homes have taken place in Brooklyn number one, two and three thing largest decline in almost four years—and it did not see a correneighborhoods such as Sheepshead right now is the interior space.” The central role transportation sponding year-over-year boost in Bay and Bay Ridge. A long commute to Manhattan is no longer seen as a played before the pandemic was leases, as Manhattan did, according major drawback amid widespread arguably strongest in Williamsburg. to the latest Elliman rental report, working from home, StreetEasy Lewis said he has had some success which Miller put together. with rentals in the neighborhood economist Nancy Wu said. Corcoran agent Daniel Kandinov despite the pandemic, but the mar- Shortsighted predictions said many of his clients have been ket was rocked well before Covid hit MTA spokeswoman Abbey Colwilling to expand their search pa- over the potential shutdown of the L lins pushed back on the idea that

New Yorkers are no longer prioritizing subway access when househunting. She characterized it as shortsighted thinking and compared the notion to predictions that no one would want to live in Lower Manhattan after 9/11, noting that Tribeca is now one of the most desirable neighborhoods in the city. “I think it’s a short-term bet,” Collins said, “and I don’t think it’s going to pan out long term at all. We’ve sort of seen this movie before with other crises.” The pandemic has dramatically reduced the number of passengers riding public transit and the revenue they generate. The agency has spent months warning of drastic service cuts if it does not receive federal financial relief. Officials said recently that they might need to eliminate 9,367 jobs, increase fares and tolls, and implement service cuts of up to 40% on buses and subways and 50% on commuter rail lines. The agency hopes to get $12 billion in federal aid to help cover its budget shortfalls for the next two years. Ridership likely will not reach 80% of pre-pandemic levels until 2024, according to a McKinsey analysis. Being close to a subway stop is not something people are writing off across the board, however, especially with the recent wave of promising vaccine news, Kandinov said. “Some are finding a little bit more value by the train,” he said. “A vaccine is right around the corner, and they’re optimistic about that.” ■

DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 3

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TECHNOLOGY

Manhattan startup Fakespot raises $4M to weed out phony customer reviews BY RYAN DEFFENBAUGH

liable, up from about 36% for the same period last year. Amazon, the world’s largest onuring a holiday shopping season expected to set line retail platform, has acknowlrecords for online sales, edged that sellers try to game its many buyers could be rating system through fake reviews. duped by fake or unreliable cus- In September the company deleted 20,000 after a Financial Times intomer reviews. found suspicious For one Lower Manhattan start- vestigation up, that’s a business opportunity. activity. Good reviews can help boost Fakespot, a company that uses artificial intelligence to warn custom- sales for products from third-party ers about bogus product reviews, sellers—those not directly affiliatsaid last week that it has raised $4 ed with Amazon—by advancing million from investors to expand its them in the search results for certain categories, such as Bluetooth software. Fakespot’s main product is an headphones and phone chargers. On the other hand, sellers can be extension, downloadable on the Google Chrome browser, that auto- hurt if their products are bombarded with bad reviews by matically scans Amazon, people who have never Best Buy, eBay and actually used them. Walmart listings online In October an Amazon and provides a letter PERCENTAGE spokesperson told grade for product reviews’ of the 720 Bloomberg News that serreliability. million Amazon vices such as Fakespot Chief Executive Saoud reviews that and competitor ReviewKhalifah said phony reFakespot Meta “cannot concretely views have proliferated analyzed from determine the authenticiduring the Covid-19 panMarch through ty of a review, as they do demic, which has pushed September that not have access to Amamost shopping online. were deemed zon’s propriety data such “Reviews are often the unreliable as reviewer, seller and most important part in product history.” your assessment of a Khalifah said Fakespot has product online,” Khalifah said. “Unfortunately, sellers that engage scanned more than 8 billion customer reviews to help its algorithm in fraud know that.” An analysis released last month learn to spot a phony post. One by Fakespot of 720 million Amazon clear indicator is the number of rereviews from March through Sep- views compared with how long a tember found that 42% were unre- product has been on the platform,

FROM PAGE 1

point,” Schumer said during a press conference with Pelosi. Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has pushed for stimulus no larger than $500 billion—without aid to local and state governments. As the two sides haggle, several indicators point to a halted recovery for New York. The recession has already cut deeper in New York City than in the rest of the country, according to Fed data released last Wednesday. Consumer spending in the city has remained largely flat since August and is still 20% below the pre-pandemic rate. In upstate New York and most of the rest of the

Buyer beware Khalifah launched the company six years ago from his dorm room at Monmouth University in New Jersey after being duped into buying junk products online. The company is focused on building its customer base by offering Fakespot for free, with ads, Khalifah said. He eventually will

seek to monetize the product further, he said. The Chrome extension has 300,000 users. Millions more have used Fakespot’s website, where there is an option to directly enter URLs to check their online product reviews. The startup plans to use its new funds to expand its 14-member staff, focusing on engineering and product development. The funding round was led by Bullpen Capital, a venture capital firm in San Francis-

and October, after the city clawed back about 8% of the jobs it lost during the summer. “The fact is that job growth has been sluggish as we’re entering into a new wave of the pandemic, with tightening restrictions likely to lead to more difficulties for many in the labor market going forward,” said Richard Deitz, an economist with the New York Fed.

Bridging the gap Meanwhile, public sector revenues for New York City are down 4% from January through October, compared to the same point last year. They are down 3.5% for New York state, according to the New York Fed data. That has accelerated billion-dollar budget gaps for both governments. Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo are counting on President-elect Joseph Biden to push through relief funds to fill in those holes, though budget watchdogs warn that alone won’t save the city and the state. “Federal aid will hopefully serve as a very valuable bridge to get us over the worst of these times,” said Andrew Rein, president of the Citizens Budget Commission. “But the bridge has to land on a stable

“MANY FAMILY BUDGETS AND SMALL BUSINESSES ARE AT A BREAKING POINT” country, spending has reached pre-pandemic levels. The city’s employment level in October was 12% below the pre-pandemic rate, compared with a 7% decline in the U.S. overall. There was little overall job growth for New York between September

he said. He added that there are more complicated language indicators the product scans for as well.

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FEDERAL

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42%

shore—a government we can afford on a recurring basis when the economy is expanding.” Together, city and state budget holes total $73.3 billion over four years, according to the CBC. A report from the watchdog group Dec. 1 looked back on the federal aid given to New York following the 2008– 2009 Great Recession and found that similar levels of relief would still leave the state with $57 billion worth of budget fixes. Facing its own crisis, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has asked for $12 billion in federal

relief to avoid cutting service, instituting layoffs, eliminating subway lines and taking other cost-cutting measures within the next year. The MTA has borrowed twice from the Fed through a municipal lending program that will expire at the end of this month.

Food and rent Although he was asked about the lending program, Williams expressed more concern about the diminishing relief for small businesses and individuals as Paycheck Protection Program loans run out

co that has backed FanDuel, Life360 and Zynga. Paul Martino, managing partner at Bullpen, compared Fakespot to Honey, a browser extension that automatically applies coupon codes to online purchases. PayPal bought the company for $4 billion in 2019. “The problems for reviews are even more pernicious than the need to get a coupon on checkout,” Martino said. “This is a problem that will only get worse.” ■ and unemployment funding expires. The $600 in extra weekly unemployment benefits through the Cares Act ended in September, and a federal program offering unemployment benefits to the self-employed and gig workers ends at the end of this month. “People lose track of how enormous the increase in support for families and unemployed people was for the Cares Act,” Williams said. “The savings rate skyrocketed. … That’s one of the reasons we have continued to see reasonable consumer spending. But, eventually, that will run out, especially for families who are struggling.” The good news, he said, is that a vaccine is on the way, with Cuomo pledging 170,000 doses of Pfizer’s drug by Dec. 15 (see page 2). Federal officials project that widespread vaccinations for Americans could be feasible by June. “For small businesses and families, this is an issue of getting through the next six months or so,” Williams said. “That’s where fiscal support is really well targeted: basically getting people to be able to pay the rent and get food on the table.” ■

4 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

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REAL ESTATE

Vornado sues two more tenants— for both back and future rent BY EDDIE SMALL

6 and $15.6 million in rent through the end of its lease, as Vornado does not anticipate being able to fill the space with a new tenant before then, according to the lawsuit. The real estate firm is requesting at least $50,000 in attorney’s fees as well.

ornado Realty Trust is suing two more of its tenants, demanding not just back rent but future rent

as well. The company has filed suits against New Yorker Consulting, a career coaching firm, and Retailing Enterprises, a Florida-based company focused on selling jewelry and accessories. The suits accuse the tenants of breaking their lease and owing Vornado money up through

Similar issues The lawsuit against New Yorker Consulting outlines the same issues, although the amount of money Vornado is demanding is much smaller. The suit claims New Yorker Consulting had a lease at 1 Penn Plaza through Feb. 28, 2021, but the firm abandoned the space July 1. It owes Vornado about $25,000 in back rent and $67,000 in rent through the end of its lease, again because Vornado believes the space will remain empty through the end of February, according to the suit. Vornado is requesting at least $50,000 in attorney’s fees in this suit as well. Representatives for Vornado declined to comment, and representatives for New Yorker Consulting

the date when each lease was initially due to end. Retailing Enterprises’ lease at 1535 Broadway in Times Square started in November 2015 and isn’t up until 2028, but the company abandoned its space Nov. 6, the lawsuit says. It now owes Vornado about $514,000 in rent through Nov.

COSTAR

THE FIRM THINKS THE SPACES WILL STAY EMPTY THROUGH THE END OF EACH LEASE

and Retailing Enterprises did not respond to requests for comment.

Layoffs and cuts Vornado announced last Tuesday that it will lay off 70 people and

cut its operating costs by $35 million amid a 40% decline in its share price and one of the roughest environments for the city’s office and retail properties in recent memory. The company also announced that

President Michael Franco will take over the responsibilities of Chief Financial Officer Joseph Macnow, who is stepping down. The real estate giant has sued several of its tenants over unpaid rent since the onset of the pandemic, including Planet Hollywood and U.S. Polo Assn. at 1540 Broadway and the eatery Dig at 11 Penn Plaza. Vornado purchased the retail and commercial condominium portion of 1535 Broadway, home to the Marriott Marquis, for $442 million in 2018. The real estate firm had signed a 20year lease for the property in 2012 that gave it the option to buy the space. ■

Brooklyn development firm closes on site for planned Upper East Side high-rise

Redefining what you should expect from your accountant. AVISON YOUNG

ybak Development has closed on its $26 million purchase of an Upper East Side development site where it plans to build a mixed-use high-rise property. The Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn– based real estate company has purchased 126 E. 86th St. from JPMorgan Chase, according to property records. The development site is currently home to a 2-story commercial building and lies between Lexington Avenue and Park Avenue, according to the city. Rybak filed plans with the Department of Buildings in November to construct a project with 32 residential units at the address. It is slated to stand 20 stories and 210 feet tall and span more than 64,000 square feet, split between about 63,000 square feet of residential space and 1,500 square feet of commercial space. Avison Young’s tristate investment sales group represented the seller in the deal and was also able to help Rybak secure additional air rights from a nearby property. Representatives for Rybak did not respond to a request for comment, and representatives for JPMorgan declined to comment. Rybak has several major residential projects throughout the city, including The Manor, at 333 E.

grassicpas.com 82nd St. on the Upper East Side; Sea Breeze Tower, at 271 Sea Breeze Ave. on Coney Island; and QNS44, at 11-12 44th Drive in Long Island City.

Recent deals Investment sales have slowed in New York amid the pandemic, but there have been some other recent closes. Prologis purchased a Queens radio station site for $51 million shortly before Thanksgiv-

ing, for instance, and Steel Equities closed on its $20 million purchase of 132 Bogart St. and 375-377 Johnson Ave. in East Williamsburg last month as well. Other firms have been filing plans for new projects too, including Zara Realty, which intends to build a 223-unit project in Jamaica, and Arker Cos., which filed plans for a 194-unit project as part of its Edgemere Commons affordable-housing complex. — E.S. DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 5

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IN THE MARKETS

To lift their sagging stock, some companies turn to financial face-lifts

140 COMPANIES LISTED ON MAJOR U.S. EXCHANGES HAVE EXECUTED REVERSE SPLITS

for the misbegotten and are seldom heard from again. “This reverse split will not only assist with maintaining compliance with the New York Stock Exchange listing requirements but will also reset our share price above the $5 minimum requirement of some investment funds,” Cedar Realty’s chief financial officer explained during the conference call. A recent message left for the company seeking comment was not immediately returned.

Eye of the beholder Other struggling companies that have gone to reverse splitsville this year include New York City REIT, mortgage-servicer Ocwen Financial, hotel owner Ashford Hospitality Trust and retailer J. Jill. A financial face-lift sometimes buys a struggling company time to get past an ugly stretch. Citigroup executed a 1-for-10 reverse split in 2011, when its stock was trading at an embarrassing $4 per share. American International Group did a 1-for20 split in the dark days of 2009. How well do reverse splits work in general? Well, as is the case with cosmetic surgery, success is in the eye of the beholder. Take Blue Apron, which last year did a 1-for-15 reverse split. The stock

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ommercial landlord Cedar Street’s version of a visit to Dr. ZizRealty Trust has had a mor, the guy who used to advertise tough year. To save about skin procedures on the subway. The financial face-lifts are under$500,000 in annual rental costs, the unprofitable Long Island taken when other ideas to boost a retail-property owner plans to relo- company’s sagging stock price haven’t worked. cate next year, moving its Such cosmetic surgery headquarters on Long Isis popular these days: So land from a Port Washingfar this year 140 compaton office building to what nies listed on major U.S. management described as exchanges have executed an “essentially unrentreverse splits, according to able” space in the back of a S&P Global Market IntelliMassapequa shopping gence. center. At Cedar Realty, the re“This is a terrific G&A savings opportunity,” AARON ELSTEIN verse split tightened things up by reducing its share Chief Executive Bruce count to 13.5 million from Schanzer said on a conference call, referring to general and 89 million. By cutting the pie into fewer pieces, each of the landlord’s administrative costs. Alas, bold moves like that have remaining shares became worth done little for Cedar Realty’s stock, more. On Nov. 27, the day the reverse split took effect, what had been a penny stock suddenly became worth $9 per share. Cedar Realty’s reverse split wasn’t which has lost as much as 82% of its driven only by optics. For a stock to value this year. With its back to the stay on an exchange and remain on wall, management has broken the investment pros’ radar screens, it emergency glass and executed a typically needs to trade for a least $1 per share. Stocks that fall below that 1-for-6.6 reverse split of its shares. Reverse stock splits are Wall level are banished to marketplaces

since then has gone up 20%—pretty close to the S&P 500’s 24% gain. That’s good. On the other hand, at $8.40 per share, Blue Apron’s stock price today is far below its reverse-split-adjusted price of $150 when it went public three years ago. Even if you consider Blue Apron’s reverse split a success, though, it appears to be exceptional. A 2008 study of more than 1,600 reverse splits

over 40 years showed companies that did them underperformed their peers by 50%. That’s likely because successful companies don’t resort to such maneuvers. We’ll know in time if Cedar Realty’s reverse split marks the dawn of a new day for the company. But the initial returns aren’t encouraging. The stock fell by 12% Nov. 23 and was trading for less than $8 per share. ■

HEALTH CARE

BY SHUAN SIM

ealth care- and biotech-focused blank-check firms, or special purpose acquisition companies, are increasing in number thanks to the bullish stock market and the pandemic, but market saturation lurks around the corner, an expert told Crain's. SPACs are shell companies that are publicly listed on stock exchanges for the purposes of acquiring a firm. Investors fund these entities and typically expect them to make the acquisition within two years of being listed in order to receive a speedy return on their investment. The investors then become shareholders in the acquired company. Many SPACs have specific industries they mine for acquirable firms. The challenge for these companies is finding an industry focus that is attractive to investors now and will remain so a year or two down the line, said David Feldman, a securities lawyer at Hiller PC. Health care has been popular for a while, but its profile has certainly been elevated recently, Feldman noted. The overall strong IPO market has boosted all sectors, however. October was a record month for the

number of SPACs that went public, with 50 companies raising nearly $17.5 billion, according to a Bloomberg Law report in November. The pandemic has accelerated trends within the health care space, especially for telemedicine and virtual health firms. “These companies are now a standard for treatment after having faced restrictions for years, and many are now attractive for acquisition,” Feldman said. Locally, health care–focused SPACs have seen a bunch of recent activity. In July Midtown-based Healthcare Merger Corp. acquired Reston, Va., acute care telemedicine provider SOC Telemed for $720 million, and Midtown-based KBL Merger Corp. raised $115 million to merge with Palo Alto, Calif., pharmaceutical company CannBioRx, renamed 180 Life Sciences. July also saw Midtown-based Churchill Capital Corp. III merging with Flatiron District–based health care cost-management solutions provider Multiplan for $11 billion, one of the biggest to date. On Nov. 19 Midtown’s Longview Acquisition Corp. acquired Guilford, Conn., medical imaging company Butterfly Network for $1.5 billion.

Multibillion-dollar deals tend to be outliers, though, and most SPACs aim to raise in the sweet spot of up to a couple hundred million, Feldman said. World Trade Center–based 10X Capital Venture Acquisition on Nov. 24 announced its $175 million IPO. It intends to acquire a firm in the health care, consumer internet, e-commerce, software or financial services industry. Princeton, N.J.– based Consonance-HFW Acquisition Corp. on Nov. 18 priced its $80 million offering and will focus on the health care industry, particularly the biotechnology sector in developed countries. It is commonly accepted by investors that SPACs should acquire a company with a valuation that is 80% of the amount raised from investors. This has led to blank-check companies becoming more modest in the amount they aim to take in. “After all, there are only so many billion-dollar companies to be acquired,” Feldman said.

Fierce competition Although SPACs will continue to pop up for some time, the market is facing saturation, he noted. “They’re starting to fight for deals

ISTOCK

Health-related blank-check firms boom during pandemic

with each other.” As blank-check companies are not beholden to their industry focus, any SPAC can acquire health care and biotech companies as long as investors sign off on the deal, he said. This adds to competition. For example, cannabis-focused SPACs have raised billions in the past year or so, and for some, their time limit for acquiring a company is nearly up, Feldman said. These SPACs could look into acquiring in

the biotech firm space instead, which traditionally has deals amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars, he noted. According to a report from cannabis investment firm Viridian Capital Advisors, there is nearly $2.6 billion in IPO proceeds from 10 cannabis SPACs that need to be used in the next 15 months. “At some point, there is such a thing as too many SPACs,” Feldman said. ■

6 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

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TECHNOLOGY

State Covid tracing app slow to gain acceptance

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BY RYAN DEFFENBAUGH

Mitigation measure As cases rise again in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has pushed for people to download Covid Alert NY as a mitigation measure during the new surge of the virus, with a link to the app placed at the top of all state web pages. A joint study by Oxford University and Google released this past summer found that exposure notification apps could reduce infections by 15% in a region if they are downloaded by at least 15% of the population and paired with manual contact tracing. Public health experts called the notification numbers disappointing for an app they believe could help relieve pressure on contact tracers as cases rise. The 780 total notifications “tells me that the app isn’t being used enough to generate much benefit. Each person is coming in contact with very few others who also are us-

COVID ALERT NY

wo months after its launch, fewer than 1,000 users have received warnings from an app that alerts New Yorkers to potential Covid-19 exposure, with many of its users failing to log their positive test results. The app, called Covid Alert NY, uses Bluetooth technology developed by Google and Apple to detect when people have been within 6 feet of one another for longer than 10 minutes—assuming they both have downloaded the software. If a user of the app tests positive, anyone they have had contact with for that duration is notified, without recording any personally identifying details about the exposure. That process requires users to manually enter their test results, however, and a majority have not followed through. Since the app’s launch on Oct. 1, 2,631 New York residents have tested positive for Covid-19 and reported to a contact tracer they have the app installed on their phone, according to data provided by the state Department of Health. The contact tracer provides those individuals a unique code to enter into the app, signifying their positive test and anonymously alerting users who had contact with that person. Only 854 people—about a third of those cases—have put the code in Covid Alert NY, according to state data. Those 854 cases reported to the app have triggered 780 exposure notifications to other users. The 854 cases represent just 0.5% of the more than 180,000 positive Covid-19 tests the state has recorded since Covid Alert NY’s launch. The app has been downloaded 1.1 million times, which would represent 7% of the adult population in New York, though it is unlikely that each download represents an active user.

ing the app,” said Troy Tassier, a Fordham University professor who studies economic epidemiology.

‘A marketing problem’

DON’T WORK AT HOME WORK NEAR HOME

Denis Nash, a professor of epidemiology at the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health, said the state needs to find ways to create demand around Covid Alert NY. “Compared to the potential job this app could be doing, it is not yet even coming close,” Nash said. “This has the potential to relieve a massive burden on contact tracers. Yes, this is public health, but it is also a marketing problem.” The challenge for the state is balancing privacy on Covid Alert NY with the need to expand it. Cuomo has stressed that the app is built around privacy and every step is voluntary. Cuomo’s office said alerts about potential exposure reach beyond the 780 users who have received them directly, as those people will likely notify their family and friends. The app is not intended to replace traditional contact tracing. “New York state’s contact tracers have proven to be extremely effective, reaching over 80% of all cases, and the Covid Alert NY app serves to supplement these efforts,” Laura Montross, a state spokeswoman, said. The state has advertised Covid Alert NY through social outlets such as Facebook as well as TV and radio ads. The ads have all come through donated space or time, Montross said. The $700,000 development cost for the app came through a donation from Bloomberg Philanthropies and federal grants. “I think you will see increased downloads now with so much attention being paid to spiking Covid rates in general,” said Julie Samuels, executive director of Tech:NYC, which is helping promote the app. “People will still want to do things, so you need to practice appropriate safety measures, and downloading the app is one such measure.” ■ DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 7

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chief executive officer K.C. Crain senior executive vice president Chris Crain group publisher Mary Kramer

EDITORIAL

publisher/executive editor

Nasdaq’s diversity proposal will help nudge firms into an equitable future made a point of flocking to establishments like hers. Their financial support helped her afford to rehire staff the eatery, Black Nile, had to lay off because of the pandemic. And diversity has been top of mind for some larger corporations as well, even before the recent unrest. Goldman Sachs promised last year that a quarter of its analysts and new associates would be Black or Latino hires. Earlier this year Crain’s 40 Under 40 honoree Sara E. Wechter, global head of human resources at Citi, detailed her firm’s commitment to having 40% of roles at the assistant vice president and managing director level be held by female employees globally and 8% by Black employees in the U.S. by the end of next year. There’s backlash with everything, however. CNN recently reported that a new law in California requiring publicly traded companies based in that state to have at least one minority board member was the subject of a lawsuit by a conservative group that sought to block it. The group’s president called Nasdaq’s proposed requirement “a discriminatory quota system for race and gender.”

CLEARLY, THE OLD BOYS’ CLUB HAS NO DESIRE TO CHANGE ON ITS OWN seek accountability on racial equity from the police and the government and also have sought to support businesses helmed by minority entrepreneurs. Last month one local Black female restaurateur told Crain’s that after the killing of George Floyd in Minnesota, New Yorkers

editor Robert Hordt assistant managing editors Telisha Bryan,

Janon Fisher Gabriella Iannetta associate editor Lizeth Beltran art director Carolyn McClain photographer Buck Ennis senior reporters Aaron Elstein, Eddie Small reporters Ryan Deffenbaugh,

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Of course it would be preferable to people of color and women if their recruitment and hiring happened organically. But seeing as the majority of C-suite leadership and board membership remains overwhelmingly white and male at corporations across the world, mandates such as the one Nasdaq seeks to implement are welcome. Clearly, the old boys’ club has no desire to change on its own or it would have by now. Having a third party call out

these corporations to evolve or explain why they can’t might just be the nudge into the future that these companies need. Instead of worrying about the same old names that might be left out, companies should focus on the diverse perspectives that will finally be heard. “Diversity changes the conversation,” as Wechter told Crain’s. “It changes the way you look at things. It’s really just good for business.” ■

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Contactless payments are here to stay hen the pandemic hit, many of us came to realize just how often we come into contact with surfaces that could be contaminated. Citizens around the globe began worrying about handling credit cards or cash, with one key question on everyone’s mind: “Will I get sick from this?” In New York City, stores and restaurants have been mandated to continue accepting cash, despite its reduced use and concerns from individuals who fear the low but possible risk of viral transmission through banknotes. Concerns around safety and hygiene created an opening for the rise of contactless payments in the U.S., but it’s the added benefit of convenience, the offering of a better experience and the increasing availability of the infrastructure that is pushing us to continue modernizing the way we pay. More and more data is showcasing the rapid adoption of contactless payments. Mastercard released

EDITORIAL

audience & analytics manager

OP-ED

BY SURESH PALLIPARAMBIL

associate publisher Lisa Rudy

BLOOMBERG

ast month the Nasdaq stock exchange filed a proposal with the Securities and Exchange Commission to require each of its listed firms to publicly disclose the diversity statistics of its board of directors. Companies would be mandated to have at least one board member who identifies as female and one who identifies as either a minority or a member of the LGBTQ community, according to the Associated Press. Foreign and small firms would be given some leeway. The move follows a spring and summer when issues of race, diversity and inclusion have bubbled up across the nation. More Americans have begun to

Frederick P. Gabriel Jr.

a survey this year that found 79% of global participants are using contactless payments, with 82% saying that contactless is a cleaner way to pay. Narrowing in on the U.S., Americans across all generations are planning on using contactless payments as they shop this holiday season. In a recent Discover survey, 78% of millennials said they would be using contactless payments more frequently, followed by Gen Z at 75% and Gen X at 70%. Boomers weren’t foo far behind, at 60%.

No going back Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, said on his recent quarterly shareholder call that, “Contactless payment has taken on a different level of adoption, and I don’t think we’ll go back. The United States has been lagging in contactless payments, and I think the pandemic may very well put the U.S. on a different trajectory.” Contactless payments are here to stay due to their ease and convenience, so businesses and municipalities need to keep investing in the infrastructure to support the shift. Furthermore, the U.S. still

has a long way to go to catch up to the rest of the world with the adoption of the technologies. We need to use New York City as the example upon which we build the framework for mass adoption across the rest of the nation. New reports and activity within New York City have shown that people are willing to shift to contactless payments if the infrastructure is there. As they said in the classic movie Field of Dreams, “If you build it, they will come.” The MTA’s OMNY contactless fare-payment system is a prime example. In September OMNY hit a record 21 million taps across the 365 subway stations where it’s installed. Considering that ridership has dropped significantly during the Covid-19 pandemic, the sheer number of taps shows the potential and interest in contactless payment for transit. Groups including the Secure Technology Alliance Transportation Council and the U.S. Payments Forum have taken notice of the potential and are now using the example set forth in New York to draw attention to the expanded use

of contactless open payments for transit. Public transit is maybe the most prominent example of contactless payment adoption in the city, but we’re seeing a drastic spike in the retail industry as well. According to a recent survey from the National Retail Federation, 94% of retailers expected contactless payments to continue to increase during the next 18 months, and 57% of survey respondents said they would continue using contactless payments post-pandemic. The way we see it, retailers need to adopt contactless payment infrastructure or get left behind as consumers seek convenient and safe shopping experiences. In New York, especially where on-demand, fast-paced lifestyles demand convenience and competition is high, ensuring contactless infrastructure is in place and operational can make all the difference. ■ Suresh Palliparambil is chief executive of New York City–based Purewrist, a contactless-payment company.

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8 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

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OP-ED

BY SCOTT STRINGER AND COSTA CONSTANTINIDES

taring down near-bankruptcy 40 years ago, New York’s leaders decided to put off critical infrastructure upgrades. Decades later, we’re still paying the price for that shortsighted disinvestment— every time we wait on the subway platform for a train that never seems to arrive or crowd into a hospital many times over capacity. Now we stand to make the same mistake on a larger scale, with even greater consequences: neglecting our generational fight against climate change. Since March, Mayor Bill de Blasio has put a hard stop on nearly all new capital projects including those designed to help clean up polluting buildings and strengthen resiliency. This isn’t a moment to fold on investments in sustainable infrastructure—we need to double down. Interest rates are low, the labor is available, and the urgency to fight climate change is clear. Covid-19 laid bare the systemic disparities that run through our city—and revealed the human cost of environmental injustice and our past disinvestment in climate solu-

tions. Poor air quality, higher rates of asthma, congestion, overcrowding and lack of green outdoor space left entire neighborhoods overexposed in the darkest days of the pandemic. And as hurricane after hurricane batter our shores, attempts to claw back funding for sustainable building retrofits and resiliency projects undermine frontline communities threatened by both rising seas and rising rates of Covid-19. We should seize this opportunity to put New Yorkers to work on the projects that will guarantee better air, safer shorelines and a more sustainable future for our city. Sustainable capital projects also would be an economic lifeline to communities hit hardest by Covid-19. New York City’s 14% unemployment rate far outpaces the national average, and people of color and immigrant New Yorkers continue to bear the brunt of our city’s job losses. Minority- and woman-owned firms, already contending with systemic disparities, report that they are on the brink of permanent closure. Government construction contracts for sustainability and resiliency upgrades would generate a pipeline of wellpaid opportunities for businesses

that need steady revenue to keep the lights on and the doors open. Renowned economists, from John Maynard Keynes to Joseph Stiglitz, agree: Public-sector investment is the fastest, surest way to escape a depression and put people back to work. Climate Works for All estimates a $16.2 billion investment in sustainability and resiliency would yield 100,000 jobs in three years—that would put 15% of New York’s currently unemployed workforce back on the payroll. The energy-efficiency retrofits under that plan, the centerpiece of last year’s Climate Mobilization Act, could create 42,000 jobs alone. President-elect Joe Biden has embraced the role of government in his plan to jump-start the nation’s economic recovery, with a particular focus on creating green jobs.

Future shock The ways in which the pandemic has permanently changed the face of industry are coming into stark relief as our economy slowly reopens. Lower-wage, service-oriented industries have been most impacted by the current recession. New York City shed more than 253,000 service industry jobs

BLOOMBERG

Sustainable capital projects could be an economic lifeline

alone, and many of them aren’t coming back. As we rebuild, we need to invest in and expand opportunities in emerging sustainability sectors that can produce good-paying green jobs able to withstand future economic shock. Before Covid-19 shut down New York City eight months ago, we were on our way to being the global leader in the fight against climate change. Now the city’s capital commitments are half of what we expected this year. That puts a giant question mark over New York’s historic initiative to shrink large buildings’ collective carbon foot-

print by 40% in the next decade. Climate change is impervious to balance sheets. We cannot afford to kick the can down the road on what is a clear and present danger to this generation and the next. Investments in sustainable infrastructure are smart fiscal, social and environmental policy that we should initiate immediately. ■ Scott Stringer is city comptroller. Costa Constantinides is a City Council member who represents Astoria, East Elmhurst, Rikers Island and parts of Long Island City and Woodside.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Harsh truths about legal pot’s impact on the state budget But discussing marijuana revenues without first looking at the subsequent costs is a recipe for failure. Further, a first-of-its-kind study analyzing costs of marijuana legalization on the state’s law enforcement and emergency services agencies and local governments found that a huge percentage of New York’s estimated revenue from legal pot sales would need to be directed toward costs associated with law enforcement and protecting public safety. A recent report shows upward of $235 million in potential expenses in the first year alone, more than two-thirds of the state’s expected marijuana tax revenue for the first three years. Costs for administration and enforcement would cost the state several million dollars upfront. To put it simply, when it comes to pushing marijuana legalization to try and soothe our budget issues, we agree with state Sen. Liz Krueger, a sponsor of the state’s marijuana legalization bill: “Anyone who thinks legalized marijuana is the silver bullet for revenue problems for their state is just wrong.” KEVIN SABET President of Smart Approaches to Marijuana

MTA's doomsday budget A recent Crain’s editorial (“MTA’s doomsday messaging could have unintended consequences,” Nov. 22) took issue with the way in which the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has communicated with the public about its budget crisis. The piece suggested that the authority’s forthright warnings about its historic fiscal challenges “could hurt the city’s chance of recovery by scaring companies, workers and tourists away from the city.” The truth is precisely the opposite. Our words are wholly informed by the realities of our balance sheet. The MTA is losing hundreds of millions of dollars each month due to the pandemic and, absent a massive infusion of $12 billion in federal assistance, it will be forced to make catastrophic cuts to service, personnel and key capital improvements. And in the New York metropolitan region alone, as many as 450,000 jobs are in jeopardy should we proceed with layoffs, service reductions and gutting the Capital Plan, according to the NYU Rudin Center and economic consulting firm Appleseed. That translates to up to $50 billion in lost earnings and a reduction up to $65 billion in the region’s GDP.

Such devastating cuts are, quite simply, the only way we can balance our budget—a legal requirement under state law. Crain’s is a business publication. Would you advise any business approaching a fiscal catastrophe to soft-pedal the situation and mislead its customers, investors and other stakeholders? Sincerely, PAT FOYE MTA chairman and CEO

Zoned out Natalie Sachmechi accurately describes (Nov. 16, "Much ado about zoning") the fundamental inflexibility of New York’s zoning code, but her survey of zoning history repeats a whitewashed version that ignores the law’s racist roots and overlooks the inequities it perpetuates today. New York City’s zoning code is not only bloated and inefficient, it is

GETTY IMAGES

To the editor: In a recent article, “Marijuana won’t cure New York’s budget woes, watchdog warns,” Crain’s New York cites a warning from the Citizens Budget Commission that commercializing marijuana in an attempt to fix the state’s budget turmoil is misguided because revenues take many years before they become consistent. The article notes that California has collected some $700 million in tax revenue from marijuana sales over the past year. What’s missing is that California has a $200 billion state budget—$700 million is a measly 0.35% of its budget. In California when legalization advocates were pushing to pass Proposition 64—the legalization amendment—“experts” projected the state would see annual revenues north of $1 billion. That has failed to become reality, and the state has spent millions on a public-awareness campaign urging people to no longer purchase marijuana from the illicit market. Here’s the reality when it comes to marijuana revenues: They are minuscule, almost every state misses its projections, and even as marijuana markets grow, research from economists has shown that tax revenue quickly tapers off due to price changes in the market.

dramatically out of step with the city’s values and overdue for a wholesale rethinking. Edward Basset might have complained about the impact of the 1915 Equitable Building and its shadow, but the lengthy report by the commission he led that paved the way for zoning law, focuses on protecting wealthy white enclaves from the intrusion of immigrant garment workers. The ethos of the 1961 zoning is the same that created the slum-clearance programs that razed entire neighborhoods for “towers in the park” housing developments in the belief that taller buildings spaced apart would “solve” poverty. Historically segregation of uses went hand in hand with redlining and racial segregation. New York City zoning serves neither pro-development nor anti-development constituencies well. We can do better. Our next mayor should take on this much-needed reform by assembling a blue-ribbon committee to do the studies needed and to write a new zoning code. JACK L. ROBBINS Partner at FXCollaborative and adjunct professor at the NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate

Write us: Crain’s welcomes submissions to its opinion pages. Send letters to letters@CrainsNewYork.com. Send op-eds of 500 words or fewer to opinion@CrainsNewYork.com. Please include the writer’s name, company, address and telephone number. Crain’s reserves the right to edit submissions for clarity. DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 9

ASKED & ANSWERED ELIZABETH VELEZ New York Building Congress

DOSSIER

be on the sectors that have been most affected by the pandemic, like hospitals, schools, higher education and, of course, transportation.

INTERVIEW BY NATALIE SACHMECHI

WHO SHE IS Chair of the New York Building Congress and president of the Velez Organization

What is keeping projects from moving forward?

How has the construction industry shifted?

We do essential work. All those projects kept going forward, so we had to shift in place and develop policies in real time as the pandemic was evolving to be able to keep the workers safe. Finding PPP was as difficult for the construction industry as it was for the health care industry. We saw major programs, like for the Port Authority, that were put on ice. When projects were shut down, companies were really hurt, and in some instances, those projects have not come back online.

What is the biggest challenge developers are facing? Funding. A business-as-usual approach will not suffice

AGE 53, but she doesn’t think this year should count GREW UP Flatbush, Brooklyn RESIDES Riverdale, Bronx EDUCATION Bachelor’s in finance and master’s in management, Hofstra University FIRM LOYALTY She has worked at the Velez Organization since graduating from college. STAR BAKER She’s famous for her homemade gingerbread cookies, but her favorite kind of cookie is chocolate chip. She loves trying new recipes for the holidays to share with friends and family. GIVING BACK Velez volunteers for several nonprofits supporting women and minorities in construction, including the Women Builders Council and the ACE mentor program.

for us to achieve a stronger, fairer and more inclusive economy and society. Federal aid is essential to replenishing the capital budgets of our agencies. The focus should also

There’s an urgency to stabilize our economy. And one way to quickly support private investment is to incentivize and partner with the public sector. Expediting the rezoning of some communities to incentivize private investment there is important as well. I don’t think New York City is seen as an easy place to develop by any stretch. We have to be able to create a platform and an environment that incentivizes organizations, businesses and real estate developers to come in and invest their money. Otherwise, it’s not going to happen.

What can elected officials do to help?

For industry advocates and advocacy organizations as well, we need to be clear in the communication on the benefits of these projects and have a real dialogue, rather than have something come out in the news and have it be voted down the next day.

What role will the next mayor play for the industry?

It’s critical for the next leader in City Hall to understand the significance of the real estate industry and to keep New York competitive. The next leader has to understand not only what he or she would be getting into in terms of the fiscal crisis that we’re going to be facing, but we really need a visionary in City Hall to be able to work collaboratively and quickly.

What sector of real estate do you think will face the most challenges next year?

It will likely be residential construction for the financing, building and market-demand sides of it. If we focus on affordable housing, that provides a unique opportunity to build in a market that still has tremendous demand. ■

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10 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

BUCK ENNIS

lizabeth Velez has been on construction sites since she was little, whether it was joining her father at building projects or sharpening pencils in the office of the Velez Organization, the general construction and management firm he founded in 1972. After three decades in the business, Velez chairs the New York Building Congress, helping to lead the industry into recovery after a tumultuous spring, when all nonessential construction was shut down. She is on Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Construction and Real Estate Sector Advisory Council, providing guidance on ways to keep workers safe and projects in the pipeline.

best small company GIANT MACHINES

best midsize company

DOTS

best large company COCKROACH LABS

ffice perks are great, but what happens when no one’s in the office? Employers were tested this year to come up with new ways to motivate their employees in the midst of a pandemic and the subsequent move toward working from home. Their efforts are on display in Crain’s latest Best Places to Work rankings. One company, Cockroach Labs, for example, gave workers $1,000 to improve their home office once it realized employees weren’t headed back to the corporate office anytime soon. Cockroach, a cloud-based database platform, moved from first place in the midsize category (50 to 99 employees) last year to the No. 1 spot in the large division (100 or more employees) this year. Dots, a mobile games developer, took top honors in the midsize category, and Giant Machines, a software company, came in first among small companies (25 to 49 employees). As in past years, Crain’s partnered with Best Companies Group, an independent research firm, to find employers in New York City that are creating not only a superior workplace but also a successful corporate culture. The rankings are based on extensive employee surveys as well as a review of employee benefits, policies and human resources practices. The top three factors cited by workers in judging an employer were organizational leadership, job satisfaction and whether employees feel valued at work. To see this year’s rankings, turn to page 13. — Robert Hordt, editor

NOTE: Group photos were taken before Covid-19 restrictions requiring masks and social distancing were mandated. All photos were supplied by

the companies.

DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 11

Foosball makes way for votive candles Employers look for opportunities to connect virtually—and meaningfully—during the pandemic BY THE NUMBERS

BY AARON ELSTEIN

ost years the staff at Cockroach Labs gathers at an upstate summer camp and sleeps in the cabins—which means tall people’s feet hang off beds intended for children. This year’s bonding rituals were—like much else in life—virtual. The talent show, the trivia contest and the eating of doughnuts off a string all were done via Zoom. “It was really cool,” human resources chief Lindsay Grenawalt said. Really? Camp on Zoom was cool? “We did our best,” Grenawalt said. “This year was about creating human moments for our people at a difficult time.”

$1,000

AMOUNT of the stipend that Cockroach Labs gave employees to improve their home office after the company realized staff would be working remotely for a while

5.3%

RATE by which health insurance premiums could rise next year, according to the Business Group on Health

will ask staff to pay for some or all of the increase. Some companies are trying to change the understanding around vacation and pushing employees to actually take it, even if their travel options are limited at the moment. AdTheorent is letting people roll over some vacation time in an effort to help everyone feel a bit better about this difficult year. “When times are bad you define who you really are, and we wanted to feel good about how we endured the pandemic,” CEO James Lawson said.

Perks and more perks

Staying united

COURTESY OF CLUNE CONSTRUCTION

For many years Crain’s has compiled its Best Places to Work ranking, a study that provides a glimpse at the lengths to which employers will go to keep their people happy and productive. When the city’s economy was booming, company perks turned into an arms race, with employers vying to offer the coolest work environment and the most generous benefits in the hopes workers wouldn’t mind devoting long hours to their job in exchange. What started with foosball tables and salty snacks escalated into full meals, kegerators filled with craft beer and limitless time off for those with the courage to take it. Some companies sent out free bassinets so infants might sleep better at night and their parents could show up to the office less bleary-eyed. Others offered “pawternity leave” so employees could stay at home with their new pet. Of course, the hippest office doesn’t mean much when nobody goes to it. The perks arms race stopped cold when the city’s unemployment rate soared. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York in October noted “scattered hiring in the financial sector” and characterized the job market overall as sluggish. In such an environment, the best places to work are those that have managed to maintain an esprit de corps while fending off abject despair. In April financial-software company Numerix began telling employees to take a day off every two weeks without docking them vacation time. On those “mental health days,” staff members are asked to

Sometimes the humblest gestures are the most meaningful. Clune Construction’s 150 employees in New York were sent a votive candle recently along with a note thanking them for helping see the firm through a challenging year. Clune, which specializes in commercial interiors, cut its workers’ pay by at least 10% for a few months after all work in New York stopped. But business has gotten a bit better lately, and few were laid off from the company, where employees hold a 46% ownership stake. Clune employees have STRETCHING OUT: Employees at Clune Construction practice yoga at their desks, wearing masks and social distancing. Workers in field been buying shares from offices and employees working from home join in via Zoom call. retired colleagues during “We had people working on top express my care for them and con- the past eight years as part of the merix’s senior vice president for tinue the connection we felt in per- company’s stock-ownership plan, of boxes at first,” Grenawalt said. global human resources. To help stuck-at-home employ- son,” Kuroda said. “My gestures or ESOP. Bonelli added that Numerix’s chief executive ees feel less isolated, tech-consult- may be small, but they’re honest Executive Managing Director conducted one-on- ing firm Thoughtbot mailed care and an authentic expression of the Karen Gutekanst said she and colone interviews with packages that included snacks care I have for each person.” leagues mailed the candles themOne reason companies are pro- selves after packaging them at the each of the compa- people used to enjoy at the office as ny’s 350 employees well as squishy toys and a guide to viding such human moments is office by hand. after the Covid-19 yoga poses. Office manager Steph- that the gestures are more afford“In a socially distant way, of anie Kuroda, inspired by Mr. Rog- able than pay increases or the one course,” Gutekanst noted. shutdown began. Cockroach Labs ers, mailed pencils and custom col- benefit that really costs money: “We invite you to include the engave its workers a $1,000 stipend to oring books in which each page health insurance. Premiums could closed candle with your Thanksgivimprove their home office once it represented at least one employee rise by 5.3% next year, according to ing celebrations,” the note from was understood they’d be there a and something special about them. the Business Group on Health, and CEO Dave Hall read, “so we can be “I was looking for another way to many revenue-strapped employers united in our thanks together.” ■ long time.

“THIS YEAR WAS ABOUT CREATING HUMAN MOMENTS FOR OUR PEOPLE” stay off email and social media and refrain from following the news. “We really want people to disconnect,” said Jennifer Bonelli, Nu-

12 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

SMALL COMPANIES

50 or fewer city employees

YEAR FOUNDED

NYC EMPLOYEES

U.S. EMPLOYEES

% MALE/ FEMALE EMPLOYEES

% VOLUNTARY TURNOVER

TEL OPT ECOM ION MU

TIN

■ Offered ■ Not offered

UN TIM LIMITE EO D FF

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

EM PLA PLOYE NC RM ONT ATC RIB HE UTI S RE ONS TIR EM

RANK

ENT EM EM PLOYE PLO R P YEE AYS S’ M 10 EDI 0% O CAL F PRE MIU MS HEA L FITN TH C ESS LUB OR MEM WE LLN BERS ESS HIP PRO S OR GRA MS TUI T REI ION A MB SS URS ISTA EM NC ENT E/

COMPANY PERKS

Giant Machines Software development

2015

74%/26%

Yes

Transwestern Commercial real estate services

1978

1,909

60%/40%

12%

Yes

Dataprise Information technology

1995

262

90%/10%

19%

Yes

Thoughtbot Consulting

2003

72%/28%

19%

Yes

PlaceIQ Data and technology

2010

83%/17%

10%

Yes

Hotwire Public relations and communications

2000

9%/91%

12%

Yes

LiveAuctioneers Online auctions

2002

62%/38%

Yes

One Drop Health care technology

2015

44%/56%

Yes

Neverware Computer operating systems

2011

70%/30%

10%

Yes

Catalyst Software Technology

2017

68%/32%

Yes

Radar Location platform

2016

69%/31%

Yes

Manhattantechsupport.com Information technology

2012

88%/12%

Yes

Accern Artificial intelligence

2014

77%/23%

Yes

Pappas Agency Life insurance

2001

70%/30%

N/d

Michelman & Robinson LLP Legal services

1999

109

60%/40%

26%

Yes

COMPANY/ INDUSTRY

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DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 13

YEAR FOUNDED

NYC EMPLOYEES

U.S. EMPLOYEES

% MALE/ FEMALE EMPLOYEES

% VOLUNTARY TURNOVER

TEL OPT ECOM ION MU

TIN

■ Offered ■ Not offered

UN TIM LIMITE EO D FF

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29

EM PLA PLOYE NC RM ONT ATC RIB HE UTI S RE ONS TIR EM

RANK

ENT EM EM PLOYE PLO R P YEE AYS S’ M 10 EDI 0% O CAL F PRE MIU MS HEA FITN LTH C ESS LUB OR MEM WE LLN BERS ESS HIP PRO S OR GRA MS TUI T I REI ON A MB SS URS ISTA EM NC ENT E/

COMPANY PERKS

RevTrax Marketing technology

2008

55%/45%

Yes

Pariveda Solutions Business consulting

2003

699

68%/32%

10%

Yes

Ryan Tax services

1991

1,859

60%/40%

12%

Yes

Benhar Office Interiors Office furnishings

2002

36%/64%

Yes

Star Mountain Capital Asset management

2010

86%/14%

Yes

Virginia & Ambinder Legal services

1993

23%/77%

Yes

Mantl Banking technology

2017

31%/69%

Yes

Marx Realty Real estate

1915

62.5%/37.5%

Yes

Captivate Elevator-screen content

1997

127

40%/60%

10%

Yes

SpotX Online video advertising

2007

351

54%/46%

15%

Yes

VirtualHealth Health technology

2012

74%/26%

46%

Yes

Shift7 Digital Digital media

2002

68%/32%

22%

Yes

Altfest Personal Wealth Management Wealth management

1983

68%/32%

Yes

Grassi Accounting

1980

292

53%/47%

15%

Yes

COMPANY/ INDUSTRY

succeeded Frank Schettino as Anchin’s Managing Partner.

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Spotlight on: Lowenstein Sandler LLP

to shelter in place with family and friends, Joseph J. Palermo, the Chief Operating Officer, said he and other executives “reached out to employees to make sure everyone was accounted for and doing well.”

distancing and extensively cleaning spaces on a daily basis.

Aware of the stress that an upheaval in work routines could cause, Lowenstein supplemented its employer-sponsored Employee Assistance Program with webinars and counseling to help employees cope with the challenges of working remotely.

Lowenstein’s regard for its workers also translates into supporting employee resource groups, including the Diversity Leadership Network, the LGBTQ+ Alliance and the Lowenstein Parent Network, and embracing diversity, equity and inclusion in its workplace. The groups are more active than ever in providing resources, discussing challenges and fostering connectedness.

During the shutdown, Palermo said, the firm continued to pay the salaries of office service workers, such as receptionists, catering staff and mailroom personnel, who, “through no fault of their own,” could not perform their jobs until they returned to the office. Team members from Lowenstein’s New York office provide Christmas gifts to underprivileged students at P.S. 131, a Title One School in Brooklyn. Each year, the office adopts as many as four classes and delivers more than 100 gifts to children in grades Pre-K through Grade 4.

With its emphasis on compassion and respectfulness, Lowenstein Sandler LLP leaves no stone unturned to provide employees with the support they need to be their professional best—even during the pandemic. “We have a definite commitment to the three C’s—colleagues, clients and community,” said Steven E. Siesser, a partner who co-heads the New York City office, chairs the Private Equity practice and co-chairs the Transactions & Advisory Group. “Happy people enhance our ability to serve our clients, but we also want

our employees to be happy on a human level.” Amid the chaos and grief that Covid-19 has brought with it, the law firm, a Crain’s Best Places winner for three consecutive years, has helped employees maintain their mental and physical health; kept workers regularly in the loop about client matters, among other issues; advanced the spirit of camaraderie; and continued to make a difference in the lives of those in need. At the start of the pandemic, when many New Yorkers left their homes

That level of respect for employees— regardless of rank—is reflected in Chairman and Managing Partner Gary M. Wingens’ weekly firmwide, state-of-the firm video addresses. Partners stay in touch with their teams as well via virtual meetings and phone calls. “The purpose is to make sure everyone is OK and has what they need to work,” said Siesser, whose late Friday afternoon video calls with staffers sometimes include a virtual happy hour or a game for enjoying downtime together. Lowenstein has implemented measures to safeguard employees’ health in the office by handing out personal protective equipment, tweaking office layouts for safe

“People are starting to migrate back to the office,” Siesser said, “but no one is mandated or asked to do so.”

Case in point: Women represent 51% of its 164 New York employees, and they have advanced to major committees and C-suite and board positions. “We’re a place that helps people build their careers,” Siesser said. From buying holiday gifts for children of low-income families to fighting the deportation of unaccompanied immigrant children, Lowenstein proudly upholds the humanitarian legacy of its late founder, Alan Lowenstein. The Lawyers Alliance for New York recently recognized the firm’s pro bono work with a prestigious Cornerstone Award. “This year has been a real test of the firm’s values, but we remain committed to maintaining our strong culture,” Palermo said. “As a result, we are very fortunate that our folks and our business have remained resilient throughout this period.”

20 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

COPY EDITOR ______ COLD READER ______ WRITER ______ SENIOR EDITOR ______ FINAL ______

NYC EMPLOYEES

U.S. EMPLOYEES

% MALE/ FEMALE EMPLOYEES

% VOLUNTARY TURNOVER

TEL OPT ECOM ION MU

TIN

ENT EM EM PLOYE PLO R P YEE AYS S’ M 10 EDI 0% O CAL F PRE MIU MS HEA FITN LTH C ESS LUB OR MEM WE LLN BERS ESS HIP PRO S OR GRA MS TUI REI TION A MB SS URS ISTA EM NC ENT E/

YEAR FOUNDED

UN TIM LIMITE EO D FF

34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46

EM PLA PLOYE NC RM ONT ATC RIB HE UTI S RE ONS TIR EM

ING

RANK

■ Offered ■ Not offered

COMPANY PERKS

fered

VTS Real estate technology

2012

242

286

61%/39%

Yes

Noom Health technology

2008

165

2,546

61%/39%

N/d

Yes

Yotpo E-commerce marketing

2011

166

48%/52%

Yes

Trade Desk Advertising technology

2009

292

1,044

53%/47%

Yes

Rockefeller Group Real estate

1928

235

275

69%/31%

14%

Yes

Peloton Fitness technology

2012

1,297

3,254

56%/44%

Yes

Bluecore Marketing technology

2013

161

191

57%/43%

23%

Yes

AlphaSights Information services

2008

440

482

31%/69%

22%

Yes

First Event management

1996

180

236

24%/76%

14%

Yes

Extensis Group Human resources

1997

193

38%/62%

15%

Yes

Bachrach Group Staffing

1974

123

168

53%/47%

11%

Yes

Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz Legal services

1977

136

165

41%/59%

14%

Yes

Durst Organization Real estate

1915

1,220

58%/42%

Yes

COMPANY/ INDUSTRY

NOTE: Data that was not disclosed is marked “N/d.”

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DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 21

P E

I l E N

Women account for only about 20% of our nation’s financial advisors. Regulation, technology and changing customer demand help explain why. For one, the modern financial advice business is only a few decades old. Until the 1990s, regulation dating to the Depression considered advice incidental to securities transactions. At the largest firms, advice only became central in the 1990s, when fee-based accounts started to replace commission-based accounts. Operating under a different regulatory regime, registered investment advisors—who are bound to a fiduciary standard and cannot receive commissions—began to experience growth at that time, as technology enabled them to serve customers more efficiently. In the 1980s and ’90s the emergence of financial planning as a distinct professional discipline was a response to growing consumer demand for help with an expanding

array of issues, including retirement planning. All of these changes—especially the decreasing emphasis on transactional sales, the greater emphasis on holistic advice, and the new technology permitting consumer-friendlier marketing—have made the financial advice business more attractive to women. As a result, the number of female advisors continues to grow, and the ones presented here represent a cross-section of standouts in the metropolitan area. The profiles in this inaugural report are drawn from submitted nomination materials and Crain’s Custom research; no individual or firm paid to be featured. Our list is not comprehensive, and we look forward to seeing more exceptional nominees for this honor in the years ahead. Please join Crain’s in congratulating this impressive inaugural class of Notable Women in Financial Advice.

s G s w m F f F o g f B a P C m i g o

Methodology: Advisor honorees were selected based on several factors including the level of assets under management, inclusion in reputable advisor rankings and professional certifications and accomplishments. For others, criteria included the potential influence of the honoree’s work on the delivery and quality of financial advice and/or the extent of its innovation.

STEPHANIE LYNN ACKLER

DIANE ALECCI

KAREN ALTFEST

NAMI BARAL

CHRISTINA BATER

Managing director-investments, private wealth financial advisor Wells Fargo Advisors

Senior vice president financial advisor Morgan Stanley

Founder and CEO Harvest Platform

Managing director Barrett Asset Management

Veteran financial advisor Stephanie Lynn Ackler began her career in 1984 at a predecessor firm of RBC Wealth Management. She worked there until she joined Wells Fargo in 2001. Today she heads her own group that manages more than $294 million for clients. Ackler, a chartered financial analyst, has been recognized by Forbes as a Best in State Advisor. She has been a director of the Financial Women’s Association of New York. In 2013 Ackler was accepted as a member of the Harvard Kennedy School Women’s Leadership Board, where she serves as an ambassador to the Women and Public Policy Program.

Diane Alecci started her career in 1976 at Merrill Lynch. In 2002, she teamed up with wealth advisor Lynn Blanchard to form the D&L Group. In 2013, they joined Morgan Stanley. Alecci and her seven-member team in Paramus, New Jersey, manage about $565 million in assets and focus on active asset management and financial planning. She has been recognized by Forbes as a Top Woman Financial Advisor for the past four years and for the past three years has been among its Best in State financial advisors. Alecci has been an active supporter of New Jersey’s Connie Dwyer Breast Cancer Foundation.

Principal advisor and executive vice president Altfest Personal Wealth Management

Managing debt, cutting bank and credit card fees, and improving the net worth of average Americans are the goals of Harvest Platform, founded in 2018 by Nami Baral, who calls herself the online firm’s chief empathy officer. Using artificial intelligence, the fintech company has helped users manage their personal finances by refunding millions of dollars in bank fees and keeping track of hundreds of millions of dollars in consumer debt within its platform. Before founding Harvest Platform, Baral built real-time bidding products and led revenue partnerships at Twitter. She also has worked as an investment banker. Last year, NYC FinTech Women recognized her as an Inspiring FinTech Female.

Describing herself as a dream facilitator and financial Sherpa, Chris Bater helps her clients navigate the ups and downs of life. Whether it’s planning for college or retirement, coping with divorce, helping with estate planning or philanthropy, she brings her expertise as a holistic wealth manager and portfolio manager to help clients achieve their goals. For her work at Barrett Asset Management, an 83-year-old independent firm that manages $2.1 billion, Bater was selected by Forbes as one of the Top Women Wealth Advisors in the US. She chairs the Bronx High School of Science Alumni Foundation, working to ensure that the school can continue its work for academically advanced New York City public school students.

22 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

With a Ph.D. in history, Karen Altfest always has had a unique perspective on financial advice. Altfest entered financial planning in the 1980s, when few women were in the field, determined to provide customized advice for women that would give them confidence, personally and financially. In addition to serving clients at her family-run firm that manages $2.4 billion, she has written books and articles on planning and helped create investment and planning programs at the New School and Pace University. Altfest has been recognized as a Top Woman Wealth Advisor by Forbes each year since 2017 and as one of 20 Women to Watch by InvestmentNews. She is the founding chairman of the New York Common Pantry, where she remains active.

M B M F w w A m

a P fi a y w p l o e B v t w l

JEWELLE BICKFORD

LYNN BLANCHARD

KIM BOURNE

STEPHANIE CARMEL

STEPHANIE COHEN

Partner, wealth advisor Evercore Wealth Management

Financial advisor Morgan Stanley

Managing director Playfair Planning Services

Advisor associate Wealthspire Advisors

In 2013, Jewelle Bickford, a longtime wealth advisor, joined Evercore Wealth Management, a New York-based registered investment advisory firm managing $9.1 billion. Bickford chairs the firm’s private wealth education initiative, continuing work she did at her previous firm, GenSpring Family Offices, where she led the company’s focus on women and wealth. Bickford is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the founder of Women and US Foreign Policy. She is a member of the C200, an invitation-only global membership organization for women business leaders. Bickford is a founding member and co-chair of the Paradigm for Parity movement, a group of CEOs, senior executives, board members and business academics committed to achieving gender parity at the senior levels of all major corporations by 2030.

Lynn Blanchard joined Merrill Lynch in 1985 and formed a team there with wealth advisor Diane Alecci in 2002. The two, working as the D&L Group, joined Morgan Stanley in 2013. Their seven-member, Paramus, New Jersey-based team, manages about $565 million and specializes in active asset management and financial planning. Blanchard calls herself the “numbers person” on the team, taking the lead on discussions about debt management and estate planning strategies. Blanchard has been named to the Forbes list of Top Women Financial Advisors for the past four years and to the Forbes Financial Advisor Best in State list for the past three years.

Kim Bourne, a certified public accountant and certified financial planner, created Playfair Planning Services to help clients be financially prepared for life’s unforeseen challenges. Growing up, she saw family members and friends work hard yet fall short of financial stability; her firm, which manages about $150 million, attempts to help people like them reach their goals by making smart choices about money. Bourne is a board member of the Girl Scouts of Greater New York. She is working with other black financial professionals across the nation on a 2021 launch of the Financial Implications of Slavery Heritage organization. It will seek to educate the public on the effects of poverty and privilege on American families and empower financial well-being for the economically disadvantaged.

Stephanie Carmel, this year’s board chair-elect of the Financial Planning Association of Metro New York, joined Wealthspire Advisors earlier this year after a 21-year career at IBM, where she held a variety of leadership roles in sales and sales operations. Carmel is a certified divorce financial analyst and a certified financial planner since 1993. For many years she has done pro bono financial planning. In her work at Wealthspire, a registered investment advisor managing $10 billion assets, she assists advisors throughout the financial planning process and helps manage client relationships. Carmel is a two-time winner of the Stevie Award, which recognizes the achievements of women in business.

Co-head, Consumer and Wealth Management Division Goldman Sachs

Stephanie Cohen, a partner, member of the Goldman Sachs management committee and formerly the firm’s chief strategy officer, was tapped recently to head its growing consumer-oriented businesses—which include its Marcus online bank and Goldman Sachs Personal Financial Management division. Her extensive experience at the firm includes management roles in mergers and acquisitions and other investment banking activities. Cohen, a member of Goldman’s global inclusion and diversity committee, is a global executive sponsor of the Women’s Network; a national director of CollegeSpring, which provides test preparation services for underprivileged students; and a director of Quill.org, a nonprofit that provides free online tools to help students become better writers.

ACCORDING TO THE CFP BOARD, 23.2 PERCENT OF CFP® PROFESSIONALS IN THE UNITED STATES ARE WOMEN.

KRISTEN DALTON

CARLY DE DIEGO

LEE DELORENZO

ELIZABETH DOOLEY

DOMITILIA DOS SANTOS

Managing director Bernstein Private Wealth Management For Kristen Dalton, helping women through divorce and widowhood has been a calling. At BNY Mellon Wealth Management, she was instrumental in launching a national family law practice focused on matrimonial matters, expanding the practice to include clients across 30 states. At Bernstein Private Wealth Management, a firm managing $86 billion in assets that she joined earlier this year, she has continued her work in guiding clients though periods of upheaval in their lives. A firm believer in the value of mentorship, Dalton co-headed the mentorship program at BNY Mellon in New York and volunteered as a mentor with the Invest in Girls program, which develops financial literacy and empowerment.

Chief administrative officer AdvisorEngine

Founder and president United Asset Strategies, Inc.

As the first employee hired by AdvisorEngine in 2014, Carly de Diego has played a pivotal role in building a company whose growing suite of technology tools supports financial advisors. As a child in a small Nebraska town, she helped out in her father’s grocery store and later applied her work ethic to increasingly demanding management positions at TD Ameritrade and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where she gained deep experience in wealth management’s complex, behind-the-scenes operations. Last year NYC FinTech Women named her an Inspiring Fintech Woman. De Diego is proud that her firm aims not to replace human advisors, but rather to modernize how they do business by empowering them through technology to provide the human touch clients want and need.

Lee DeLorenzo joined her father’s insurance and investment planning business in 1979, and in 1992 she transformed it into United Asset Strategies, Inc., an independent registered investment advisory firm. Today, led by DeLorenzo after her father retired, the Garden City-based employee-owned firm manages more than $1 billion in assets. While developing a culture of stewardship that extends to clients and staff, DeLorenzo, a certified financial planner, provides what she terms holistic, personalized well care with a firmwide commitment to disciplined daily money management. Forbes recognized her this year as a Top Woman Wealth Advisor. DeLorenzo is active in many local charities on Long Island.

Managing director, senior portfolio manager City National Rochdale Elizabeth Dooley oversees a team that manages more than $3.5 billion in assets at City National Rochdale, a registered investment advisory firm that is a wholly owned unit of Royal Bank of Canada. In addition to managing one of her firm’s largest portfolios, Dooley supports some of the firm’s largest clients and advisors. She is a chartered financial analyst who worked at several banks, including Mitsubishi Trust and Citibank, before joining City National Rochdale in 2000. Dooley is an active supporter of the Queens Library and the Child Center of New York, an organization with more than 50 locations and 100 programs in the city’s most underserved communities. She was born and educated in Ireland.

Financial advisor, executive director, senior portfolio management director, international client advisor Morgan Stanley Domitilia dos Santos, an attorney by training, joined Morgan Stanley in 2009 after it acquired Smith Barney, where she had been since 1984. In 1992 she formed the dos Santos Group, which manages $232 million and specializes in serving small institutional clients and high-net-worth individuals and families. Dos Santos, born in Portugal and fluent in Portuguese, Spanish, French and English, is active in Portuguese-American affairs. In 2004 she received the Honorable Medal of Merit from the president of Portugal for serving as an advisor on matters related to trade and commerce. In 2006 the Portuguese American Leadership Council honored her with the Business Leadership Award.

DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 23

EVE ELLIS

KATIE PRENTKE ENGLISH

KRISTEN EURETIG

HEATHER FLANAGAN

JULIE FORD

Wealth advisor William Blair

Cofounder and chief marketing officer Harness Wealth

Founder/CEO Brooklyn Plans

Head, Trust Fiduciary and Client Accounting Services Rockefeller Capital Management

Founder and lead financial planner Ford Financial Solutions

As a member of her firm’s executive committee, attorney and tax specialist, Heather Flanagan heads trust fiduciary and client accounting services at Rockefeller Capital Management, a registered investment advisor managing firm with $5.4 billion in assets that she joined in June. Earlier, Flanagan worked at HSBC Private Bank, where she led strategy and oversight of wealth planning, trust administration and insurance for North and South America. She led a team of advisors at PNC Wealth Management after working as a trusts and estate attorney in private practice. Flanagan is a member of the international group the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners.

Julie Ford founded her eponymous fee-only financial planning and registered investment advisory firm to serve urban professionals across the spectrum of wealth. The certified public accountant and certified financial planner believes in empowering her clients with the tools that bring purpose and clarity to their financial world to improve their lives and those of their families and communities. In addition to serving clients, Ford promotes financial literacy and health through online courses, her personal finance blog—Fiscal Therapy—and regularly teaching financial wellness classes in her community. She serves on the board of Her Village, a Bronx-based nonprofit that provides inner-city mothers with essential supplies, community and support.

Financial advice is a third career for Eve Ellis. The former professional tennis player and coach, ran a tennis business before she started a firm to build websites for law firms. In 2002, Ellis started working as an advisor at Merrill Lynch and earned the certified financial planner designation. She moved to Morgan Stanley in 2008, where she formed the Matterhorn Group, which joined William Blair earlier this year. Her team, which manages $200 million, is known for aligning clients’ investments to their values and for using client capital to affect gender, diversity and racial justice. Her many philanthropic activities have included board positions at the Ms. Foundation for Women, Susan G. Komen for the Cure New York and Maccabi USA.

Combining tech-powered insights with human expertise, the digital platform Harness Wealth aims to deliver a virtual family office by assembling and curating experts in the fields of financial, tax and estate planning. The service is free to users, who pay fees to the providers of expertise. Katie Prentke English co-founded the business in 2018 and directs its marketing. Earlier, she served as chief marketing officer of Nutmeg, Europe’s largest robo advisor, and held several marketing and product roles at American Express. Before that, she worked in investment banking and private banking at JPMorgan. Last year, English was recognized by NYC FinTech Women as an Inspiring FinTech Female.

24 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

With a master’s degree in teaching English as a Second Language, Kristen Euretig began her career as a teacher in New York City’s public schools. Switching to finance in 2008, she worked at two financial empowerment nonprofits, Neighborhood Trust Financial Partners and Microfinance Opportunities, before founding her boutique financial planning firm to address the void she saw: financial planning services for women in their 20s to early 40s who were neither rich nor poor, but who needed reliable independent financial advice and services. She describes her approach as a financial planner as someone who teaches finance as a second language to demystify investing and help professional women expand their wealth and grow personally.

congratulations to

Stephanie Ackler, cfa and all of the Notable Women in Financial Advice

With Love, The Ackler, Chapin and Bennett Families

www.ackler.com

Stephanie Lynn Ackler, CFA Managing Director â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Investments Private Wealth Financial Advisor Ackler Wealth Management of Wells Fargo Advisors

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1211 Avenue of the Americas 27th Floor New York, NY 10036 Tel: 212.205.2825 Email: Stephanie.Ackler@WFAdvisors.com

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NO Bank Guarantee

MAY Lose Value

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12/1/20 8:09 AM

STACY FRANCIS

NANCY GABEL

President and CEO Francis Financial

Managing director Evercore Wealth Management, LLC

As a specialist in helping women in transition, such as divorce or widowhood, Stacy Francis heads a 12-member team at her fee-only wealth management and financial planning firm. Francis is also the founder of Savvy Ladies, a nonprofit dedicated to educating and empowering women to take control of their finances, that has helped more than 20,000 women through free one-onone financial counseling, workshops and retreats. Francis is the host of Financially Ever After, a podcast focusing on women, money and divorce. She has received the Financial Planning Association’s Heart of Financial Planning Award and has been recognized as a Top Wealth Advisor Mom by Working Mother magazine.

In her business development role at Evercore’s wealth management unit and its trust company, Nancy Gabel brings more than 40 years’ experience as a trusts and estates attorney dealing with issues surrounding intergenerational wealth planning. Before joining Evercore in 2008, Gabel ran the estate planning department at U.S. Trust and headed the firm’s intergenerational wealth planning group. She previously worked at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson as a trust and estates lawyer. Gabel was a founding member and continues to be a member of the UJA-Federation of New York’s Lawyers Division Trusts and Estates Group. She is a member of the planned giving groups of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Central Park Conservancy.

ACCORDING TO THE CFP BOARD, LESS THAN 3.5 PERCENT OF THE 80,000 CFP® PROFESSIONALS IN THE UNITED STATES ARE BLACK OR LATINO.

STEPHANIE GROMEK

VIRGINIA M. GUY

Co-managing partner, director of portfolio and wealth advisory BBR Partners

Managing director Neuberger Berman Private Wealth Management

D m T

BBR Partners is a multifamily office that manages and invests $18 billion on behalf of its more than 150 clients. Stephanie Gromek, along with partner Todd Whitenack, is in charge of running the firm. Her responsibilities include serving as a member of BBR’s executive, investment, operating and compliance committees, and working on strategy. Gromek’s expertise is in helping families translate personal and family goals into an overall financial strategy. Helping those at the other end of the wealth spectrum, she is co-chair of the Sadie Nash Leadership Project, which promotes leadership and activism among low-income young women in all five boroughs and Newark, New Jersey, and offers educational opportunities.

Virginia Guy began her career at Neuberger Berman in 1985 as a portfolio assistant. She left to become an advisor and chief administrative officer at Grand Detour Associates, an ultra-high-networth family office. She rejoined Neuberger Berman in 1997 as a wealth advisor, and now manages $1.4 billion for clients, for whom she provides investment management and financial planning guidance. For six consecutive years, Guy has been included in Barron’s list of the nation’s Top 1,200 Financial Advisors and its list of Top 100 Women Financial Advisors. She was recognized in 2018 by Crain’s New York Business as a Notable Woman in Finance.

S h a

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR DISTIN G U ISH ED

Private Wealth Management professionals honored among the Notable Women in Financial Advice.

Virginia M. Guy

Holly Newman Kroft

Stephanie J. Stiefel, CPA

Navigate the markets. Fulfill your passions. Leave your legacy.

26 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

fi E a w c a p a u a p a fi B A h S

4 e

n p s

STACY HAISLIP

JENNIFER HATCH

KIMBERLEY HATCHETT

MONICA ISSAR

CATHERINE ‘KIT’ JACKSON

Director of portfolio management TAG Associates

President and managing partner Christopher Street Financial

Executive director Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management

Managing director, global head of multi-asset and portfolio solutions J.P. Morgan Private Bank

Senior managing director and wealth manager First Republic Investment Management

Monica Issar is responsible for leading 215 employees in portfolio management and due diligence teams around the world that oversee more than $429 billion in assets for clients. As a leader of investment as well as advisory philanthropic initiatives, she is building out the business unit’s sustainable investing, thematic and impact investing offerings. In 2011, Issar founded and later served as global head of a business acting as an outsourced chief investment officer for not-for-profit organizations and wealthy families. She is on the investment committee of the bank’s corporate foundation and on the board of UNICEF.

With a background in equity research, analysis and fund management at Wall Street firms, Catherine Jackson joined First Republic in 1998. She has been an equity analyst, director of research and a wealth manager at First Republic Bank. She and her team manage almost $500 million in assets, and her work has led to recognition by Forbes as a Top Woman Wealth Advisor and by Barron’s as one of its Top 250 Female Wealth Managers. Jackson is on the Women History Corporate Council of the New-York Historical Society. She is a frequent speaker on the importance of financial literacy for women and girls.

Since last year, Stacy Haislip has been with TAG Associates, a multifamily office that manages $8 billion. Haislip manages portfolios and selects outside investment managers for clients as a member of her firm’s investment committee. Earlier, she was a vice president at D.E. Shaw, where she worked with the firm’s institutional clients. Before that, she worked at JPMorgan Chase, where she provided investment advice and portfolio construction to ultra-high-net-worth individuals and family offices. For the past five years, Haislip has been a director and member of the finance committee of the Brooklyn Emerging Leaders Academy, an all-girls charter high school in BedfordStuyvesant.

In specializing in the complicated financial, legal and tax issues that affect LGBTQ individuals, families and their friends, Jennifer Hatch says she has found her calling. Helping individuals with their money and life decisions, she says, is far more rewarding than talking about stocks with portfolio managers, which was part of her job in institutional sales at Bear Stearns and J.P. Morgan before she joined her 40-year-old firm in 1997. Hatch believes it is Christopher Street Financial’s duty to be both an activist and major donor in the LGBTQ community, and for her efforts she has been recognized and honored by Crain’s New York Business as a 2020 Notable LGBTQ Leader and Executive, by Out Magazine as an OUT 100 “most influential, important and interesting” person and by InvestmentNews as a See It, Be It Role Model.

Since graduating from the Harvard Business School in 1991, Kimberley Hatchett has worked at Morgan Stanley, and she is now part of a team that manages more than $2 billion in assets. Hatchett started her career at Chase Manhattan Bank. She has been recognized by Forbes as a Top 200 Woman Advisor for the past four years, by the Financial Times as among its Top 100 Women Financial Advisors and by The Network Journal as a Top 25 Influential Black Woman in Business. For the past 20 years she has served as a director of iMentor, a nonprofit that mentors inner-city and underserved New York City high school students. Hatchett was an All-American in track and field in college.

A JULY 2020 STUDY FROM MCKINSEY FOUND THAT BY THE YEAR 2030, WOMEN ARE EXPECTED TO CONTROL MUCH OF THE $30 TRILLION IN FINANCIAL ASSETS THAT THE BABY BOOMER GENERATION WILL POSSESS.

NOMINATIONS N O M N AT O N S NO OM MIIIN INA NA TIIIO ION ON NS NOW N OW OPEN O P E N NO OP PE EN

Congratulations,

ELIZABETH DOOLEY

2020 Notable Women in Financial Advice honoree.

Crain's New York Business is seeking executives to be featured in our 2021 Notable in Real Estate—men and women who have impacted the New York City real estate industry in major ways. The honorees selected will be featured in a celebratory section within the January 25th issue of Crain's New York Business which will honor their professional, civic and philanthropic achievements.

THE DEADLINE TO NOMINATE IS FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18.

NOMINATE TODAY AT CRAINSNEWYORK.COM /NOTABLEREALESTATE2021

Elizabeth Dooley Managing Director, Senior Portfolio Manager, New York

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DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 27

ARIEL F. JACOBS

CAROLINA JANNICELLI

HELENA JONASSEN

LAURIE KAMHI

SHARON KLEIN

Senior vice president, wealth management advisor Merrill Lynch Wealth Management

Managing director, Market Manager J.P. Morgan Private Bank

Partner and wealth advisor Evercore Wealth Management, LLC

Chief investment officer and managing director LCK Wealth Management

President, Family Wealth, Eastern U.S. Region Wilmington Trust

Carolina Jannicelli, who is leading a team that provides financial and investment advice to wealthy families, began her career at J.P. Morgan in 1996, focusing on mergers and acquisitions and debt markets in the firm’s investment bank. Since then she has built the firm’s Latin America high-net-worth business and led her business unit’s global strategy for developing advisor talent. Jannicelli is fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese. She was on the Association of Latino Professionals for America’s list of the Top 50 Most Powerful Latinas in 2017, 2018 and 2019. She is on the corporate advisory board of UnidosUS, a national Hispanic advocacy group, and is co-chair of the Lineage Project, which brings mindfulness practices to incarcerated and vulnerable youth.

Working closely with her clients’ outside advisors to implement sophisticated planning solutions, Helena Jonassen is part of an advisor-portfolio manager team at Evercore, which she joined in 2014. Her firm manages $9.1 billion in assets and is one of the nation’s largest registered investment advisors. Jonassen has more than 30 years’ experience in serving high-net-worth families. She worked for 18 years at U.S. Trust and, earlier, at Train, Smith Counsel. In 2019, Jonassen was one of three women elevated to partner at her firm, which then had seven women among 25 partners.

As a veteran of almost 40 years in the securities business, Laurie Kamhi has served institutional and individual investors at some of the largest firms on Wall Street— Merrill Lynch, Kidder Peabody and Dean Witter—before creating her own team in 2013 as part of Hightower, a hybrid brokerage and registered investment advisory firm. In addition to managing about $350 million for her high-net-worth clients, Kamhi is working to bring more socially responsible investments and risk management solutions to Hightower through its impact investment committee. Last year, she was recognized by the Financial Times as one of America’s Top 300 Investment Advisors in 2019 and by Forbes as a Top Woman Wealth Advisor.

After an almost 12-year career as a trusts and estates attorney, Sharon Klein decided to connect her legal experience to the wider needs of individuals and families. At Wilmington Trust, which she joined in 2013 after 10 years with Lazard and Fiduciary Trust, Klein is responsible for the delivery of all services—planning, trust, investment management, family office and private banking—to high-net-worth clients in the Eastern United States. She also heads the bank’s national divorce advisory practice. This year, Klein was recognized by Forbes as one of its Top Women Wealth Advisors and as a Best in State Advisor. Next year, she will be inducted into the Estate Planning Hall of Fame.

Ariel Jacobs began her career at Merrill Lynch in 2007. Today she is part of a group based in Fort Lee, New Jersey, that manages about $950 million for clients. Jacobs, a certified financial planner, brings a holistic approach to her work, with an emphasis on retirement planning. She was included in this year’s Forbes list of America’s Top Women Wealth Advisors. In the past four years Jacobs has been honored annually by Forbes as a Top Next-Generation Wealth Advisor and by Working Mother magazine as a Top Wealth Advisor Mom. She serves on the board of the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades.

A STUDY EXPLORING THE ROLE GENDER PLAYS IN THE INVESTOR-ADVISOR RELATIONSHIP PUBLISHED EARLIER THIS YEAR BY MERRILL LYNCH FOUND THAT 75 PERCENT OF WOMEN UNDER AGE 45, AND 50 PERCENT OF WOMEN OVER AGE 55, MANAGE THEIR OWN FINANCES, WHILE YOUNGER MARRIED WOMEN ARE TWICE AS LIKELY TO SAY THEY ARE THE PRIMARY DECISION-MAKER IN THEIR HOUSEHOLD.

RAJINI KODIALAM

AMY KONG

KATHERINE KORNAS

ROBIN KRASNY

HOLLY NEWMAN KROFT

Cofounder, chief operating officer Focus Financial Partners

Chief investment officer Barrett Asset Management, LLC

Vice president of growth product and marketing Betterment

Managing director, wealth management, financial advisor, senior portfolio management director Morgan Stanley

Managing director Neuberger Berman Private Wealth Management

Focus Financial Partners, founded in 2005, occupies an unusual niche in the wealth management business: it invests in independent registered investment advisory firms that maintain their operational independence while using Focus for a variety of services. Kodialam has helped grow the firm from a kitchen-table concept to a public company with annual revenues of $1.2 billion and more than 65 partner firms. Before founding Focus, Rajini worked at American Express, where she managed interactive services for its credit card and travel businesses, and at McKinsey & Company. She is a member of the Young President’s Organization and is on the executive committees of its financial services and women’s networks.

Joining this 83-year-old independent advisory firm earlier this year as its chief investment officer and a portfolio manager, Amy Kong is deeply involved in selecting securities and constructing portfolios for her firm’s clients—who entrust it to manage $2.1 billion. Before joining Barrett, she was a senior portfolio manager at Fiduciary Trust, overseeing approximately $1.5 billion in assets for high-networth individuals and families. Earlier in her career, Kong was a portfolio manager at U.S. Trust and a credit analyst at Moody’s. The financial press frequently calls on Kong for market and investment insights.

28 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

Betterment, one of the first so-called robo advisors, has become the nation’s largest independent online financial advisor, managing more than $22 billion for customers, who hold more than 500,000 accounts at the firm. Helping to drive Betterment’s expansion is Katherine Kornas, who started her career as a product management specialist at a small streaming media company that created digital content for K-12 classrooms. She went on to product leadership positions at consumer tech companies, including Dictionary.com, Autodesk and Pandora, which led to a product role at Betterment. That role expanded to include “growth,” which now straddles content marketing, brand strategy, product management, engineering, CRM and acquisition marketing.

Robin Krasny began her Wall Street career in 1981 on the institutional side of the business, and in 2000 she began working with private clients. In 2004, at UBS, she cofounded what is now the Altera Wealth Management Group, where she is responsible for managing the team’s equity portfolios. The group moved to Morgan Stanley in 2011. Krasny has been recognized by Barron’s as a Top 100 Female Financial Advisor in each of the past five years and by Forbes as a Top Woman Advisor in 2019 and this year. She is a director of Prep for Prep, a leadership development and gifted education program, and active as a board member for Jazz at Lincoln Center and the Women in Leadership initiative at Princeton University.

Holly Newman Kroft began her Wall Street career in 1995, working in investment banking at several firms before joining Neuberger Berman in 2005 as a wealth manager. She works with ultra-high-networth individuals and their families, as well as with endowments and foundations, managing approximately $1.7 billion in assets. She has been recognized by Barron’s as a Top 100 Financial Advisor and a Top 100 Independent Wealth Advisor. For the last seven consecutive years, she has been a Barron’s Top 100 Woman Financial Advisor. In 2015 Kroft was named one of the 50 Most Influential Women in Private Wealth by Private Asset Management magazine.

J.P. Morgan Congratulates Colleen O’Callaghan & Liz Weikes FOR BEING NAMED 2020’S NOTABLE WOMEN IN FINANCIAL ADVICE

Thank you for your unwavering commitment in helping clients fulfill their goals Colleen O’Callaghan

Liz Weikes

Managing Director

The O’Callaghan Thomas Group

The Weikes Group

colleen.ocallaghan@jpmorgan.com

elizabeth.weikes@jpmorgan.com

Awards, or rankings are not a guarantee of future success or results. J.P. Morgan Wealth Management is a business of JPMorgan Chase & Co., which offers investment products and services through J.P. Morgan Securities LLC (JPMS), a registered broker-dealer and investment advisor, member FINRA and SIPC. Annuities are made available through Chase Insurance Agency, Inc. (CIA), a licensed insurance agency, doing business as Chase Insurance Agency Services, Inc. in Florida. Certain custody and other services are provided by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. (JPMCB). JPMS, CIA and JPMCB are affiliated companies under the common control of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Products not available in all states. INVESTMENT AND INSURANCE PRODUCTS: • NOT A DEPOSIT • NOT FDIC INSURED • NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY • NO BANK GUARANTEE • MAY LOSE VALUE

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KAYA LADEJOBI

MICHELE LANDA-BROOKER

MEREDITH LANGUS

DONNA LEVY

ANN LIMBERG

Founder and financial advisor Earn Into Wealth

Senior vice president, financial advisor, international client advisor Morgan Stanley

Advisor Equitable Advisors

Managing director Wealthspire Advisors

A financial advisor with expertise in life insurance, Meredith Langus is an active member of the Million Dollar Round Table, a global organization of top earners in insurance and financial services. In 2011, she joined her father’s practice at Equitable Advisors, becoming the fourth generation of her family to work for the firm, which is the securities and advisory arm of Equitable Holdings. In addition to serving as secretary of the New York chapter of Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Langus supports the Dress for Success Financial Education Program, which annually helps New York women eliminate debt, build and manage their assets, and invest wisely.

Donna Levy joined Wealthspire Advisors, formerly known as Sontag Advisory, in 2000. The firm is a registered investment advisor that manages $10 billion in assets. Levy, a member of Wealthspire’s investment policy committee, has more than 30 years of wealth management experience. Previously, she was director of investment advisory services at Clarfeld Financial Advisors, another large wealth management firm, and at Citibank’s private bank. She also worked at Safian Investment Research, an economic advisory firm specializing in investment strategy for institutional investors. Levy is on the board of FJC-A Foundation of Philanthropic Funds. She is active in philanthropy in Westchester.

Managing director, philanthropic solutions Bank of America

After working in marketing at Unilever and in wealth management at J.P. Morgan, Kaya Ladejobi founded Earn Into Wealth in 2015. The financial advisory and planning firm caters to Gen X and Gen Y executives and entrepreneurs across the country—a group often known by the acronym HENRYs, or high earners, not rich yet. She is passionate about helping them get out of debt, build wealth and attain their dreams through sound financial planning and investment management. Ladejobi feels especially motivated to help women and minorities, who typically have been underrepresented and underserved by the financial services industry. For her work, she has been recognized by Financial Advisor magazine as one of its Ten Young Advisors to Watch.

Michele Landa-Brooker, who has specialized in serving clients from Latin America and Spain since 1987, joined Morgan Stanley in 2003, after 14 years at Merrill Lynch and five years at Citibank’s international private bank. Landa-Brooker is a founding partner of the Patagonia Group, a team of five professionals that manages $644 million in assets, largely for international clients who have complex cross-border planning needs. Landa-Brooker, who conducts business in English, French, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish, is on her firm’s international client advisory council and its consulting group advisory council. Last year, she was honored by Forbes as one of its Top Women Wealth Advisors.

Overseeing her firm’s services for nonprofits, foundations, and ultra-high-net-worth families, Ann Limberg directs a nationwide team that offers board governance and development, grant-making, high-impact philanthropy and fiduciary administration. Her passion for philanthropy extends beyond her professional responsibilities. Limberg, who has received the American Conference on Diversity’s Humanitarian Award, has been involved in local philanthropy efforts for years. She serves on the boards of Valley Health System, NJTV Public Media NJ, the Macaulay Honors College Foundation for the City University of New York and the St. Bernard Project, a disaster relief organization. Limberg is a member of the Committee of 200, an organization of women executives dedicated to increasing opportunities for female entrepreneurs and corporate leaders worldwide.

IN A WHITE PAPER MAKING THE BUSINESS CASE FOR MORE FEMALE FINANCIAL ADVISORS, MILLIMAN, A FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT FIRM, POSITS THAT THE DEMAND FOR WOMEN FINANCIAL ADVISORS WILL SOON “OUTWEIGH THE SUPPLY.” IT NOTES THAT THE CONCEPT OF HAVING A “SHARED EXPERIENCE” — IN THIS CASE, BOTH THE CLIENT AND ADVISOR HAVING THE EXPERIENCE OF BEING A WOMAN — IS AN EXCEEDINGLY POWERFUL FACTOR FOR WOMEN SEEKING OUT FINANCIAL ADVICE. ALVINA H. LO

ELIZABETH LOEWY

ERIN LOWRY

LISA MANGANELLO

STEFANI BOLLAG MASRY

Chief wealth strategist Wilmington Trust

Cofounder and chief operating officer EverSafe

Founder and author Broke Millennial

Chief marketing officer Rockefeller Capital Management

Senior vice president, senior financial advisor Merrill Lynch Wealth Management

While being responsible for wealth planning, strategic advice and thought leadership development for Wilmington Trust’s wealth management division, Alvina H. Lo oversees a national team of wealth strategists and financial planners, among other experts, who are advisors to high-net-worth individuals, business owners, entrepreneurs, foundations and endowments. Before joining Wilmington Trust in 2016, Lo was a wealth advisor to highnet-worth clients at Citi Private Bank and Credit Suisse Private Wealth, and she practiced trusts and estates and tax law at Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy. This year, she was recognized by Worth magazine as one of its Groundbreakers: 50 Women Changing the World.

Before cofounding EverSafe in 2014, Elizabeth Loewy spent 30 years fighting crime, most recently as chief of the elder abuse unit at the Manhattan district attorney’s office. In addition to overseeing approximately 800 cases annually, she served as co-counsel in the trial involving the financial exploitation of philanthropist Brooke Astor. At EverSafe, which monitors bank and investment accounts, credit cards and credit data, her goal is to prevent financial exploitation, particularly of elders, before it escalates. Various studies estimate that American seniors are scammed out of as much as $37 billion a year. For her work, NYC FinTech Women honored her as an Inspiring FinTech Female in 2019.

30 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

Traditional financial advisors often shy away from seeking millennials as clients, typically because younger investors don’t have much in the way of investable wealth to manage. Enter writer Erin Lowry who saw a market niche—helping a group she labeled “broke millennials” get a handle on their personal finances and investing. Serving as an advisor through the printed page, she is the author of Broke Millennial, Broke Millennial Takes On Investing and the forthcoming Broke Millennial Talks Money: Scripts, Stories, and Advice to Navigate Awkward Financial Conversations. Her first book was named by MarketWatch as one of the best money books of 2017 and by Business Insider as one of the best personal finance books of this year.

With responsibility for the Rockefeller Capital Management brand, Lisa Manganello is the chief marketing officer of this $5.4 billion registered investment advisor, one of the nation’s largest. She previously was head of marketing for its private wealth management arm. Her extensive wealth management marketing experience includes serving as global head of brand and advertising at Morgan Stanley, where she worked for seven years before coming to Rockefeller in 2019. Earlier, she headed her own consulting firm, which specialized in financial services, and worked in marketing positions at Merrill Lynch and several leading advertising agencies.

After graduating from college, Stefani Bollag Masry joined Merrill Lynch Wealth Management in 1997. She is a founder of her current team, which manages $1.3 billion. In 2006, she founded the first formal women’s mentoring program at Merrill, which since has grown into a national program engaging thousands of members. Using her skills in the personal sphere, she organized and promoted a successful bike-ride fundraiser for her local public school. Masry has been honored by Forbes for the past two years as one of America’s Top Women Wealth Advisors and this year by Working Mother magazine as a Top Wealth Advisor Mom.

SHANNON MCLAY

SUZANNE MCNAMEE

NELLE MILLER

LAUREN MINCHES

CEO and founder The Financial Gym

Senior vice president of sales SmartAsset

Inspired by the fitness movement and wanting to create a financial services company that would help clients of all financial shapes and sizes, Shannon McLay founded The Financial Gym in 2015. A 13-year career at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, which combined stints in investment banking and wealth management, was perfect preparation for a role that has involved dispensing financial planning advice and creating financial plans for a largely young-adult clientele, as well as raising money from venture capitalists to expand the firm nationally. The Financial Gym serves more than 4,000 clients in all 50 states, with physical locations across the country. Last year, McLay was named a Woman to Watch in Shape magazine’s Women Changing the World issue.

SmartAsset is a financial technology company that provides free personal finance advice and free online tools to help users make better decisions about saving, investing, buying a home, retirement and taxes, among other financial matters. As the firm’s head of sales, Suzanne McNamee is responsible for ensuring the company has the revenue to make all that possible. After joining SmartAsset in 2017, she was key in shaping its content and tools. Earlier, she led sales for AOL in the financial space. McNamee has been a longtime mentor with Step Up, a professional women’s program whose goal is to inspire teenage girls through after-school and weekend mentorship programs.

Managing director and co-head of New York J.P. Morgan Private Bank

Vice president, product and marketing Blueprint Income

Nelle Miller manages a team of more than 75 bankers, credit executives, trust and estate attorneys, and client service professionals who serve more than 900 clients and oversee more than $15 billion in assets. The New York office team is one of the largest at the bank and numbers among its clients several of the wealthiest executives, business owners and families in New York, many of whom have more than $100 million in assets with the bank. She has spent her entire career at J.P. Morgan, assuming her current role in 2013. Miller is a director of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse and a member of its investment committee.

Developing innovations in annuities to replace rapidly disappearing conventional pensions is not the typical work of an actuary. But Lauren Minches is probably not the typical actuary. She left a job at New York Life Insurance to join a fintech startup, Blueprint Income, which has since grown to become the country’s leading online marketplace for income annuities. She has been instrumental in developing and marketing the firm’s Personal Pension, a subscription-based annuity that requires only a small upfront commitment, eliminates selecting a specific insurer, and can be applied for and managed online. As an actuary, Minches says, she’s trained to make risk-weighted decisions, and her mission is to make retirement decisions less risky.

DEMAND FOR PERSONAL FINANCIAL ADVISORS IS EXPECTED TO GROW 7% THROUGH 2028, ACCORDING TO THE BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS — HIGHER THAN OTHER OCCUPATIONS.

We are proud to congratulate Stephanie Ackler, CFA® Private Wealth Financial Advisor as a 2020 Crain’s New York Notable Women in Financial Advice Honoree At Wells Fargo Advisors, we recognize the importance of excellent service and trusted investment advice. Contact us to learn more about our focus on helping clients achieve their financial goals. Stephanie Ackler, CFA® Private Wealth Financial Advisor Managing Director – Investments 1211 Avenue of the Americas, 27th Floor, New York, NY 10036 Phone: 212.205.2825 Toll-Free: 877.239.7446 stephanie.ackler@wfadvisors.com www.ackler.com

The 2020 Crain’s New York Notable Women in Financial Advice honorees were selected based on several factors including the level of assets under management, inclusion in reputable advisor rankings and professional certifications and accomplishments.

Wells Fargo Advisors is a trade name used by Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC, Member SIPC, a registered broker-dealer and non-bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Company. © 2020 Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC CAR-1120-03220 DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 31

ALYSSA C. MOEDER

ALINA MONTES

COURTNEY MOORE

KATE MULVANY

COLLEEN O’CALLAGHAN

Managing director Merrill Private Wealth Management

Senior vice president, private wealth advisor Merrill Private Wealth Management

Partner, wealth and fiduciary advisor Evercore Wealth Management, LLC

Managing director J.P. Morgan Wealth Management

F A

Alyssa Moeder, a certified public accountant and a certified financial planner, joined Merrill Lynch in 2001 after many years at Citibank, Bankers Trust and KPMG Peat Marwick. At Merrill, she chaired and now serves on her group’s advisory council to firm management. Moeder is the founder of the Women’s Exchange, a firmwide networking and mentor program for the women. She is a director of the Girl Scout Council of Greater New York. InvestmentNews recognized her last year as a See It, Be It Role Model and, for the past 13 years Barron’s has named her a Top 100 Woman Financial Advisor.

Executive director, private wealth advisor, family wealth director, international client advisor, portfolio manager Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management Alina Montes has long experience serving global wealth families. Before joining Morgan Stanley in 2013, where she manages more than $780 million in assets, she worked at Brown Brothers Harriman for more than 17 years and in the private clients group at Bankers Trust. Montes, who was born in Cuba and raised in the U.S., works with many Latin American clients. This year, Forbes cited her as a Top Woman Wealth Advisor. Montes is on the board of the American Friends of the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, an organization that supports young Cuban artists and promotes multicultural exchange.

With more than 25 years of experience advising institutions and wealthy families, Courtney Moore is both a certified financial planner and a certified investment management analyst. She is part of a team that helps manage more than $8 billion in client assets. Moore is a former national co-chair of the Merrill Lynch Women’s Exchange, a firmwide networking group. She has been honored by Barron’s as a Top 100 Woman Financial Advisor and as one of its Top 50 Institutional Consultants. She has been honored by Working Mother magazine as a Top Wealth Advisor Mom and by the Financial Times as a Top 100 Woman Financial Advisor.

In her role at the trust company arm of Evercore, an investment banking and investment advisory firm that manages more than $9.1 billion, Kate Mulvany works with families, foundations and endowments and their other advisors to provide wealth planning and fiduciary advice. Mulvany is a member of the bank’s fiduciary oversight group. She joined Evercore in 2009, when the firm acquired U.S. Trust’s Special Fiduciary Services business, which provided independent fiduciary services to employee benefit plans at many leading corporations and institutions. At U.S. Trust, Mulvany led a number of complex personal and fiduciary relationships and led the Southwest Connecticut and Long Island Trust groups. She serves on the executive advisory board of SilverSource, a not-for-profit organization in Stamford, Connecticut, that helps seniors in need.

As a founding member of the O’Callaghan Thomas Group, Colleen O’Callaghan leads a team that manages $1.82 billion in assets for its ultra-high-networth clients. She and her team came to J.P. Morgan Securities in 2017 from Morgan Stanley. Earlier in her career, O’Callaghan was with Credit Suisse and Lehman Brothers. Forbes ranked her No. 1 on its Top Women Advisors list in 2017, and Barron’s has included her in the top 20 in its list of leading women financial advisors. Barron’s also ranked her team among the nation’s top 50 private wealth management teams.

C t w t

RAMONA ORTEGA

GERI PELL

AVIVA PINTO

NICOLE PULLEN ROSS

ROBIN M. REICH

Founder My Money My Future

Private wealth advisor and CEO of Pell Wealth Partners Ameriprise Financial

Managing director Wealthspire Advisors

New York region head, private wealth management; head of sports and entertainment solutions Goldman Sachs

Managing director, senior financial advisor Merrill Lynch Wealth Management

M J

The mission of My Money My Future, the personal finance platform created by Ramona Ortega in 2016, is to address the unique financial needs of communities of color, help them build wealth and close the racial wealth gap. Before creating her site, Ortega was a Wall Street attorney who worked on complex securities litigation and corporate matters in private practice and at the Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Contending that multicultural millennials have been overlooked and underserved by financial institutions, she combines education and content with personalized product recommendations and financial advice in her all-inone platform. Last year, NYC FinTech Women named her an Inspiring FinTech Female.

Geri Pell, a financial advisor since 1986, operates her own wealth management business affiliated with Ameriprise Financial—an 18-member team managing $1.34 billion, which includes seven financial advisors in Rye Brook and Manhattan. From 2009 to this year, Barron’s has recognized Pell one of the top 100 women financial advisors in the country. She was inducted into the Business Council of Westchester’s Hall of Fame in 2018 for her professional accomplishment, community service and leadership. Pell, who advocates for socially responsible investing, is president of the board of trustees for Treehouse Shakers, a New York City nonprofit theater and dance company that creates original work for young audiences.

32 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

Aviva Pinto, a senior advisor at one of the nation’s largest registered investment advisory firms, joined Wealthspire Advisors in 2015 after serving wealthy clients at Bank of America Private Wealth Management, Lazard Asset Management, Neuberger Berman and Oppenheimer Capital, among others. In her work helping clients for whom her firm manages $10 billion in assets, Pinto specializes in assisting individuals in transition, whether that involves inheritance, divorce, widowhood or the sale of a business. She holds the certified divorce financial analyst and certified divorce specialist designations. Long Island Business News has recognized Pinto as a Top 50 Businesswoman on Long Island.

As co-head of Goldman Sachs’ firmwide black network, Nicole Pullen Ross leads the firm’s New York private wealth management business and its sports and entertainment solutions offering, which her team launched in 2018. Previously, she headed the private wealth business in the mid-Atlantic region, leading the Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., offices. Before joining Goldman Sachs in 1999, she worked at J.P. Morgan in New York. Pullen Ross is a trustee of the Brookings Institute, where she is a member of the investment committee. Earlier, she served as a founding board member of New York’s Public Prep Charter School Network.

In 1985 Robin Reich, a 36-year veteran of the securities business, joined Merrill Lynch and now heads a four-person team that manages more than $1 billion. Her emphasis has been on developing tailored tax-sensitive investment guidance for high-net-worth individuals and their family members from generation to generation. She holds the Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor designation from the College for Financial Planning. This year, for the seventh consecutive year, Reich has been honored by Barron’s as a Top 100 Woman Financial Advisor; Forbes has named her a Top Woman Wealth Advisor for the fourth consecutive year.

a t p R A f l m o r o c R t t s w

L w J $ s

o s i a b 2 J 2 W B F a

RITA ROBBINS

JENNIFER SOLIMINE

MARTHA STANIFORD

STEPHANIE J. STIEFEL

JOYCE STREITHORST

Founder and president Affiliated Advisors

Global Head of Manager Solutions, Wealth Management J.P. Morgan Private Bank

Managing director Wealthspire Advisors

Managing director Neuberger Berman Private Wealth Management

Director of financial planning and chief compliance officer Frisch Financial Group

Stephanie Stiefel, a certified public accountant by training, joined Neuberger Berman in 1990 after working for Arthur Andersen as a personal financial planner and a senior tax manager. As head of client development for the firm’s Straus Group, Stiefel helps to manage $2.42 billion in client assets. Previously, Stiefel was the group’s head of wealth management. She is a board member of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at New York University and a Queens College trustee. Previously, she was on the Jewish Communal Fund Board. For the fifth consecutive year, Stiefel is among the top five on Barron’s list of Top 100 Women Financial Advisors.

Joyce Streithorst, a Forbes Top Woman Wealth Advisor and a Working Mother magazine Top Wealth Advisor Mom for the past four years, has 25 years of financial planning experience, the past 16 of which have been with Long Island’s Frisch Financial, a registered investment advisory firm that manages $469 million. Streithorst has extensive experience working with widows and widowers, the newly divorced and those who have come into new and sudden money. She has taught tax planning at New York University, given lectures on financial planning for women throughout the New York area and served on the board of the Financial Planning Association of Long Island.

Contrary to the public perception that most financial advisors work for large brokerage firms, the largest number actually are advisory firm owners themselves or are independent contractors who, for purposes of regulation and operations, are affiliated with securities firms that are not widely known. A big player in that latter ecosystem is Rita Robbins, who heads Affiliated Advisors. Her firm, founded in 1994 and one of the largest of its kind, supports and monitors 85 advisors who operate independently as registered representatives and oversee more than $2 billion for clients across the nation. Robbins, honored as a Woman to Watch by industry publication InvestmentNews, says she strives to break barriers for women in financial services.

Jennifer Solimine, a 20-year veteran of J.P. Morgan, leads a team that selects investment managers and investment vehicles across all asset classes for more than $500 million in investments held by U.S. clients of the private bank. She was appointed head of the group in May. Most recently she served as the U.S. private bank’s chief risk officer. Earlier, she established and led the investments team at the unit’s Greenwich, Connecticut, office. She began her career as an equity portfolio manager at Nomura Asset Management. Aside from her J.P. Morgan activities, Solimine is engaged in attracting donors to the National Bone Marrow Registry.

After experience working in corporate treasury departments and in capital markets at Bankers Trust, Martha Staniford shifted to wealth management and moved to CIBC Oppenheimer, where she developed services and products for high-net-worth individuals, families and family offices. She joined Wealthspire Advisors, a registered investment advisory firm formerly known as Sontag Advisory, in 2003. For her firm’s clients, who entrust it to manage $10 billion in assets, Staniford provides solutions that integrate tax, retirement and estate planning, as well as investments and insurance, into a comprehensive financial-investment strategy. She is a volunteer and a director of the Petey Greene Program, which provides tutoring for those in prison.

LIZ WEIKES

LATOYA WESTBROOKS

ANNA WINDERBAUM

BARBARA YEE

GRACE YOON

Managing director J.P. Morgan Wealth Management

Founder Wealthly

Liz Weikes, a wealth advisor whose female-led group within J.P. Morgan Securities manages $3.6 billion in assets, is one of a select group of advisors at the firm who is a member of its securities portfolio manager program. As such, she can create client portfolios and manage them on a discretionary basis, which she does for high-net-worth individuals, business owners and corporate executives. She began her securities career in 2006 at Bear Stearns, which JPMorgan Chase acquired in 2008. For the past three years, Weikes has been honored by Barron’s as a Top 100 Woman Financial Advisor and by Forbes as a Top Woman Wealth Advisor.

LaToya Westbrooks describes Wealthly, the personal finance literacy and coaching platform she founded in 2018, as a way for millennial singles and couples to reach their financial goals. Through her site and in-person coaching, she provides tools and financial advice in the form of nuts-and-bolts suggestions about building an emergency fund, eliminating debt, improving credit ratings, maximizing retirement savings and everyday money management—all areas that friends, family and colleagues wanted her help with while she was working in trading and technology at Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Betterment. NYC FinTech Women honored her as an Inspiring FinTech Female. Westbrooks, a multifaceted millennial, is a full-time user-experience researcher at Facebook.

Managing director, private wealth advisor Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management

Executive director, family wealth director, senior portfolio management director, international client advisor Morgan Stanley

Head of Business Development and Strategic Partnerships Rockefeller Capital Management

Anna Winderbaum leads an experienced team that manages about $1.8 billion in assets. For more than 22 years, she has been advising wealthy families, family offices and foundations. Winderbaum, co-chair of her firm’s advisory council, has been honored as a Morgan Stanley MAKER, a group of women in wealth management who have served as groundbreakers, innovators and advocates for women. Before joining Morgan Stanley in 2015, she worked at Credit Suisse for 15 years, where she coheaded one of its largest wealth management teams. Winderbaum has been recognized by Barron’s, Forbes, the Financial Times and Working Woman magazine as a top woman advisor.

Since 2009, Barbara Yee has worked at Morgan Stanley and one of its predecessor firms as a family wealth director. She and her team manage almost $2 billion in assets. Yee began her career on Wall Street working with institutional clients and high-net-worth individuals and families at Kidder Peabody, S.G. Warburg and Merrill Lynch, among other firms. She has been recognized by Forbes as a Top Woman Wealth Advisor and by Barron’s as a Top 100 Women Financial Advisor. Yee has served on the boards of Hamilton-Madison House, the China Aids Fund, the American Cancer Society in New York and the Lower Manhattan YMCA.

As a member of the executive committee of this $5.4 billion registered investment advisory firm, Grace Yoon is responsible for deepening client relationships and elevating client engagement for Rockefeller Capital Management’s global family office. In this role, Yoon focuses on engaging with women and next-generation family members, and building customized sustainability and impact investing solutions. She chairs the Rockefeller Next Gen Advisory Council, and she is on the firm’s committee that oversees its proxy voting and shareholder engagement policies in connection with environmental, social and governance issues. Yoon is a director of Invest in Girls and an instructor for Girls Who Code.

DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 33

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LEGAL NOTICE UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK ) Chapter 11 In re: ) Case No. 20-12117 (MEW) COSMOLEDO, LLC, et al. Debtors. ) Jointly Administered NOTICE OF DEADLINES REQUIRING FILING OF PROOFS OF CLAIM FORMS ON OR BEFORE JANUARY 8, 2021 TO ALL PERSONS AND ENTITIES WITH CLAIMS AGAINST ANY OF THE DEBTOR ENTITIES LISTED ON PAGES 1 AND 2 OF THIS NOTICE: On November 25, 2020, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York (the “Court”) entered an order [ECF No.: 182] (the “Bar Date Order”) in the chapter 11 cases of Cosmoledo LLC (“Cosmoledo”) and certain of its affiliates, the debtors and debtors in possession in the abovecaptioned cases (collectively, the “Debtors”), establishing January 8, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) (the “General Bar Date”) as the general deadline for each person or entity (including individuals, partnerships, corporations, joint ventures and trusts) to file a proof of claim against any of the Debtors listed below: Debtor, Debtor’s EIN, Case Number: Cosmoledo, LLC, 38-3826787, 20-12117 (MEW); Breadroll, LLC, 46-3563279, 20-12118 (MEW); 688 Bronx Commissary, LLC, 47-3686515, 20-12119 (MEW); 95 Broad Commissary, LLC, 46-3062335, 20-12120 (MEW); 178 Bruckner Commissary, LLC, 46-3062581, 20-12121 (MEW); 8 West Bakery, LLC, 45-4956421, 20-12122 (MEW); NYC 1294 Third Ave Bakery, LLC, 45-4242001, 20-12123 (MEW); 921 Broadway Bakery, LLC, 46-0622352, 20-12124 (MEW); 1800 Broadway Bakery, LLC, 46-2318939, 20-12125 (MEW); 1535 Third Avenue Bakery, LLC, 46-4241011, 20-12126 (MEW); 2161 Broadway Bakery, LLC, 46-5702767, 20-12127 (MEW); 210 Joralemon Bakery, LLC, 47-4044779, 20-12128 (MEW); 1377 Sixth Avenue Bakery, LLC, 81-2969717, 20-12129 (MEW); 400 Fifth Avenue Bakery, LLC, 81-4386378, 20-12130 (MEW); 1400 Broadway Bakery, LLC, 81-4038529, 20-12131 (MEW); 575 Lexington Avenue Bakery, LLC, 81-4709884, 20-12132 (MEW); 685 Third Avenue Bakery, LLC, 82-1779613, 20-12133 (MEW); 370 Lexington Avenue Bakery, LLC, 82-1110672, 20-12134 (MEW); 787 Seventh Avenue Bakery, LLC, 82-2076846, 20-12135 (MEW); 339 Seventh Avenue Bakery, LLC, 82-3301406, 20-12136 (MEW); 55 Hudson Yards Bakery, LLC, 82-2627583, 20-12137 (MEW). The General Bar Date, the other deadlines established by the Bar Date Order, and the procedures set forth below for filing proofs of claim apply to all claims against any of the Debtors that arose prior to September 10, 2020, the date on which the Debtors commenced these chapter 11 cases (the “Petition Date”), except for those holders of claims listed in Section 4 below that are specifically excluded from the filing requirements established by the Bar Date Order. Governmental units have until March 10, 2021, at 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time, the first business day following the date that is 180 days after the order for relief, to file proofs of claim. 1. WHO MUST FILE A PROOF OF CLAIM. You MUST file a proof of claim to vote on a chapter 11 plan filed by the Debtors or to share in distributions from the Debtors’ bankruptcy estates if you have a claim that arose prior to the Petition Date, and the claim is not of the types of claim described in Section 4 below. Claims based on acts or omissions of the Debtors that occurred before the Petition Date must be filed on or prior to the applicable Bar Date, even if such claims are not now fixed, liquidated or certain, or did not mature or become fixed, liquidated or certain before the Petition Date. The Bar Date Order establishes the following bar dates for filing proofs of claim in these chapter 11 cases (collectively, the “Bar Dates”): a. General Bar Date. Except as otherwise described in this Notice, all persons and entities that hold a claim against any of the Debtors that arose prior to the Petition Date shall file a proof of claim as described in this Notice by January 8, 2021 at 4:00 p.m., Eastern time. For the avoidance of doubt, the General Bar Date applies to claims asserted pursuant to section 503(b)(9) of the Bankruptcy Code (a “503(b)(9) Claim”). b. Amended Schedule Bar Date. If any of the Debtors amends or supplements its schedules of assets and liabilities and statements of financial affairs filed in these cases (the “Schedules”), any claimant affected by such amendment or supplement must file a proof of claim or make any amendments to a previously filed proof of claim on or before the date that is the later of (i) the General Bar Date and (ii) 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time, on the date that is 30 days after the date that notice of the applicable amendment or supplement to the Schedules is served on the claimant (the “Amended Schedule Bar Date”). c. Governmental Bar Date. All governmental units (as defined in section 101(27) of the Bankruptcy Code (as defined below)) holding claims against any of the Debtors that arose or are deemed to have arisen prior to the Petition Date must file proofs of claim by March 10, 2021, at 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time (the “Governmental Bar Date”). d. Rejection Bar Date. Any person or entity that holds a claim that arises from the rejection of an executory contract or unexpired lease, as to which the order authorizing such rejection is dated on or before the date of entry of this Order, must file a proof of claim based on such rejection on or before the later of the applicable General Bar Date or the date that is 30 days after the date of the order authorizing such rejection, and any person or entity that holds a claim that arises from rejection of an executory contract or unexpired lease, as to which an order authorizing such rejection is dated after the date of entry of the Bar Date Order, must file a proof of claim on or before such date

as the Court may fix in the applicable order authorizing such rejection. Under Section 101(5) of the Bankruptcy Code and as used in this Notice, the word “claim” means: (a) a right to payment, whether or not such right is reduced to judgment, liquidated, unliquidated, fixed, contingent, matured, unmatured, disputed, undisputed, legal, equitable, secured, or unsecured; or (b) a right to an equitable remedy for breach of performance if such breach gives rise to a right to payment, whether or not such right to an equitable remedy is reduced to judgment, fixed, contingent, matured, unmatured, disputed, undisputed, secured or unsecured. 2. WHAT TO FILE. Enclosed is a proof of claim form for use in these chapter 11 cases. You may also use another proof of claim form that conforms substantially to Official Bankruptcy Form No. 410. If your claim has been listed on the Debtors’ Schedules, the attached proof of claim form also sets forth: (a) the amount of your claim as scheduled by the Debtors; (b) the identity of the Debtor against which your claim is scheduled; (c) whether your claim is scheduled as disputed, contingent or unliquidated; and (d) whether your claim is scheduled as a secured claim, an unsecured priority claim, or an unsecured nonpriority claim. You will receive a separate proof of claim form for each claim scheduled in your name by the Debtors. You may utilize the claim form(s) provided by the Debtors to file your claim. Additional proof of claim forms may be obtained at www.donlinrecano.com/maisonkayserusa or http://www. uscourts.gov/forms/bankruptcy-forms/proof-claim-0. All proofs of claim must be signed by the claimant or, if the claimant is not an individual, by an authorized agent of the claimant. Your signature may be digitally signed if your claim is filed electronically. Each proof of claim form must be written in English and be denominated in United States currency. You should attach to your completed proof of claim form any documents on which the claim is based (or, if such documents are voluminous, attach a summary) or an explanation as to why the documents are not available. In addition to the requirements set forth in the immediately preceding paragraph, any proof of claim asserting a 503(b)(9) Claim must also: (i) include the value of the goods delivered to and received by the Debtors in the 20 days prior to the Petition Date; (ii) attach any documentation identifying the particular invoices for which the 503(b)(9) Claim is being asserted; and (iii) set forth whether any portion of the 503(b)(9) Claim was satisfied by payments made by the Debtors pursuant to any order of the Court authorizing the Debtors to pay prepetition claims. Your proof of claim form must not contain complete social security numbers or taxpayer identification numbers (only the last four digits), a complete birth date (only the year), the name of a minor (only the minor’s initials) or a financial account number (only the last four digits of such financial account). All holders of claims against more than one Debtor must file a separate proof of claim with respect to each such Debtor. Each holder of a claim must identify on its proof of claim form the specific Debtor against which its claim is asserted. Any claim that references only the Debtors’ joint administration case number (Cosmoledo, LLC, et al., Case No. 20-12117) or that otherwise fails to identify a Debtor shall be deemed as filed only against Debtor Cosmoledo, LLC. If more than one Debtor is listed on the form, the proof of claim will be treated as filed only against the first listed Debtor. A list of the names of the Debtors and their case numbers is set forth on pages 1 and 2 of this Notice. 3. WHEN AND WHERE TO FILE. Except as provided for herein, all proofs of claim must be filed so as to be received on or before the applicable Bar Date: IF SENT BY UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE, SEND TO: Donlin, Recano & Company, Inc., Re: Cosmoledo, LLC, et al., P.O. Box 199043, Blythebourne Station, Brooklyn, NY 11219; IF SENT BY HAND DELIVERY OR OVERNIGHT DELIVERY, SEND TO: Donlin, Recano & Company, Inc., Re: Cosmoledo, LLC, et al., 6201 15th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11219; IF ELECTRONICALLY: The website established by DRC, using the interface available on such website located at https://www.donlinrecano.com/ Clients/mk/FileClaim. Proofs of claim will be deemed filed only when received at the address listed above or filed electronically on or before the applicable Bar Date. Proofs of claim may NOT be delivered by facsimile, telecopy or electronic mail transmission. 4. CLAIMS FOR WHICH A PROOF OF CLAIM NEED NOT BE FILED. You do not need to file a proof of claim on or prior to the applicable Bar Date described in this Notice if your claim falls into one of the following categories are: (a) Any claim that already been asserted in a filed, signed proof of claim against the applicable Debtor(s) with the Clerk of the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York or with DRC, the Debtors’ claims agent, in a form substantially similar to Official Bankruptcy Form No. 410; (b) Any claim listed on the Schedules, provided that: (i) such claim is not scheduled as “disputed,” “contingent” or “unliquidated,” (ii) the claimant does not disagree with the amount, nature and priority of the claim as set forth in the Schedules, and (iii) the claimant does not dispute that the claim is an obligation only of the specific Debtor against which the claim is listed in the Schedules; (c) Any claim that has been allowed by a final order of the Court entered on or before the applicable Bar Date; (d) Any claim that has been paid in full by any of the Debtors; (e) Any claim for which a different deadline previously has been fixed by order of the Court; (f) The claim of any Debtor against another Debtor, or any of the non-Debtor subsidiaries of Cosmoledo, LLC having a claim against any of the Debtors; and

(g) Any claim is allowable under sections 503(b) and 507(a)(2) of the Bankruptcy Code as an administrative expense that arose after November 2, 2020. If you are a holder of an equity interest in any of the Debtors, you need not file a proof of interest with respect to the ownership of such equity interest at this time. However, if you assert a claim against any of the Debtors, including a claim relating to such equity interest or the purchase or sale of such interest, a proof of such claim must be filed on or prior to the applicable Bar Date pursuant to the procedures set forth in this Notice. This Notice is being sent to many persons and entities that have had some relationship with or have done business with the Debtors but may not have an unpaid claim against the Debtors. The fact that you have received this Notice does not mean that you have a claim or that the Debtors or the Court believe that you have a claim against the Debtors. 5. EXECUTORY CONTRACTS AND UNEXPIRED LEASES. If you have a claim arising out of the rejection of an executory contract or unexpired lease as to which the order authorizing such rejection is dated on or before the date hereof, the date of entry of the Bar Order, you must file a proof of claim by the Bar Date. Any person or entity that has a claim arising from the rejection of an executory contract or unexpired lease, as to which the order is dated after the date of entry of the Bar Order, you must file a proof of claim with respect to such claim by the date fixed by the Court in the applicable order authorizing rejection of such contract or lease. 6. CONSEQUENCES OF FAILURE TO FILE A PROOF OF CLAIM BY THE BAR DATE. ANY HOLDER OF A CLAIM THAT IS NOT EXEMPTED FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE BAR DATE ORDER, AS SET FORTH IN SECTION 4 ABOVE, AND THAT FAILS TO TIMELY FILE A PROOF OF CLAIM IN THE APPROPRIATE FORM BY THE APPLICABLE BAR DATE AS DESCRIBED IN THIS NOTICE, SHALL BE FOREVER BARRED, ESTOPPED AND ENJOINED FROM: (A) ASSERTING THE APPLICABLE CLAIM AGAINST THE DEBTORS OR THEIR ESTATES OR PROPERTY, OR (B) VOTING ON OR RECEIVING ANY DISTRIBUTION UNDER ANY PLAN OF REORGANIZATION IN THESE CHAPTER 11 CASES, EXCEPT, IN EACH CASE, TO THE EXTENT SUCH CLAIM IS IDENTIFIED IN THE SCHEDULES AS AN UNDISPUTED, NONCONTINGENT AND LIQUIDATED CLAIM HELD BY SUCH ENTITY. 7. THE DEBTORS’ SCHEDULES AND ACCESS THERETO. You may be listed as the holder of a claim against one or more of the Debtors in the Debtors’ Schedules. To determine if and how you are listed on the Schedules, please refer to the descriptions set forth on the enclosed proof of claim form(s) regarding the nature, amount and status of your claim(s). If the Debtors believe that you may hold claims against more than one Debtor, you will receive multiple proof of claim forms, each of which will reflect the nature and amount of your claim against one Debtor, as listed in the Schedules. If you rely on the Debtors’ Schedules, it is your responsibility to determine that the claim is accurately listed in the Schedules. However, you may rely on the enclosed form, which lists your claim as scheduled, identifies the Debtor against which it is scheduled, and specifies whether the claim is disputed, contingent or unliquidated. If you agree with the nature, amount and status of your claim as listed in the Debtors’ Schedules, and if you do not dispute that your claim is only against the Debtor(s) specified by the Debtors in the Schedules, and if your claim is not described in the Schedules as “disputed,” “contingent” or “unliquidated,” you need not file a proof of claim. Otherwise, or if you decide to file a proof of claim, you must do so before the applicable Bar Date in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Notice. Copies of the Debtors’ Schedules, the Bar Date Order and other information and documents regarding the Debtors’ chapter 11 cases are available for a fee from the Court’s website at https://ecf.nysb.uscourts.gov. A login and password to the Court’s Public Access to Court Electronic Records (“PACER”) system are required to access this information and can be obtained through the PACER Service Center at www.pacer.gov. Copies of the Schedules, the Bar Date Order and other information and documents regarding these chapter 11 cases may be examined between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday at the Office of the Clerk of the Bankruptcy Court, One Bowling Green, Room 534, New York, NY 10004-1408; and are also available free from charge from the website of the Debtors’ claims agent at www.donlinrecano. com/maisonkayserusa, or by written request to the Debtors’ claims agent at the address listed above in Section 3 of this Notice or by calling 1 (800) 467-0821 (for callers in the United States). Questions concerning the contents to this Notice and requests for proofs of claim should be directed to DRC at 1 (800) 467-0821 (for callers in the United States) or via email to maisonkayserusainfo.com. Please note that neither DRC staff nor counsel to the Debtors are permitted to give you legal advice. You should consult your own attorney for assistance regarding any other inquiries, such as questions concerning the completion or filing of a proof of claim. A HOLDER OF A POSSIBLE CLAIM AGAINST THE DEBTORS SHOULD CONSULT AN ATTORNEY REGARDING ANY MATTERS NOT COVERED BY THIS NOTICE, SUCH AS WHETHER THE HOLDER SHOULD FILE A PROOF OF CLAIM. BY ORDER OF THE COURT Dated: November 30, 2020 New York, New York ATTORNEYS FOR THE DEBTOR: MINTZ & GOLD LLP, 600 Third Avenue, 25th Floor, New York, New York 10016, Telephone: (212) 696-4848, Facsimile: (212) 696-1231, Attn: Andrew R. Gottesman, Esq

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES Notice of Formation of SIGNATURE SP 3, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/19/20. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of LEWIS ALAN REALTY, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/16/20. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: c/o Lewis Plosky, 25 West 31st St., NY, NY 10001. Purpose: any lawful activities.

Notice of formation of WangaWoman, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State NY (SSNY) on 10/14/2020. Office Location: NY County. SSNY is designated as an agent upon whom process may be served and shall mail a copy of the process against LLC to PO Box #2003, New York, NY 10159.

Notice of Formation of FEDLAND, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/29/20. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Elam Professional Industrial Cleaning Services LLC. filed with SSNY on 09/16/2020. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent for process and shall mail copy to: 300 West 145 Street, #6T, New York, NY 10039. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Formation of PRIME 220E53-STT LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 0 5/21/19. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 347 Fifth Ave., 16th Fl., NY, NY 10016. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Empire Management America Corp. at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

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PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES

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NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY (LLC) The name of the LLC is: JACKSON TERRACE PRESERVATION, LLC Articles of Organization were filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) office on October 7, 2020. The County in which the Office is to be located: New York County, NY. The SSNY is designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. The address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC: 200 VESEY STREET, 24TH FLOOR, NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281. Purpose: any lawful activity.

REPORT AVAILABLE The Annual Report of the Altschul Fund for the calendar year ended Dec. 31, LV DYDLODEOH DW WKH SULQFLSDO RIÀFH at 45 E End Ave., #2C, New York, NY 10028 for inspection during regular business hours by any citizen who requests it within 180 days hereof. Principal manager of the foundation is J. Altschul.

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES Notice of Formation of GRIT PICTURES, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/ 14/20. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Wendy Heller C/O Heller Law Group, 1800 Century Park East, Ste 400, Los Angeles, CA 90067. Purpose: any lawful activities. NOTICE OF FORMATION OF Zemi Beauty LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/08/2020. Office location and principal business address: 50 W 112th St., APT 1B, New York, NY 10026. SSNY is designated as agent for service of process. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any service of process against the LLC is: 606 W 57th St., APT 2603, New York, NY 10019. Purpose: any lawful act or activity. Notice of Qualification of MARC JONES CONSTRUCTION, L.L.C. Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/04/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Louisiana (LA) on 07/20/07. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. LA addr. of LLC: 22171 McH Rd., Mandeville, LA 70471. Cert. of Form. filed with LA Secy. of State, 8585 Archives Ave., Baton Rouge, LA 70809. Purpose: Sales and installation of residential/ commercial photovoltaic systems including all electrical wiring. Residential energy efficiency grading & upgrades.

Notice of Qual. of 502 PARK HOLDINGS, LLC, Authority filed with the SSNY on 09/04/2020. Office loc: NY County. LLC formed in DE on 04/ 01/2019. SSNY is designated as agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLC, 233 Wilshire Blvd., Ste 850, Santa Monica, CA 90401. Address required to be maintained in DE: CSC, 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington DE 19808. Cert of Formation filed with DE Div. of Corps, 401 Federal St., Ste 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any Lawful Purpose. Notice of Qualification of PULSE ANALYTICS, LLC. Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/ 16/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 11/ 13/09. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: One Pennsylvania Plaza, Ste. 2505, NY, NY 11901. Address to be maintained in DE: c/o Business Filings Incorporated, 108 West 13th St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Arts of Org. filed with the Secy. of State, Division of Corporations, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activities. Notice of Formation of ELMWOOD SQUARE HOUSING CLASS B, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/21/20. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 60 Columbus Circle, 19th Fl., NY, NY 10023. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Purpose: Any lawful activity. NY PRINCIPAL LLC, Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 09/25/2020. Office loc: NY County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Ed Gitlin, 33 West 60th Street Ste 2-1, NY, NY 10023. Reg Agent: Ed Gitlin, 33 West 60th Street Ste 2-1, NY, NY 10023. Purpose: Any Lawful Purpose Notice of Formation of ELMWOOD SQUARE HOUSING GP, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/21/20. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 60 Columbus Circle, 19th Fl., NY, NY 10023. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Purpose: Any lawful activity. David Sable, LLC, Arts of Org. filed SSNY 2/10/20. Office: NY Co. SSNY designated agent of LLC upon whom process may be served & mail to David Sable, 201 West 70th St., 11HI, NY, NY 10023. General Purpose.

34 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | DECEMBER 7, 2020

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Notice of Formation of CNYM RISK MANAGEMENT, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/27/20. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Michael Feldman, 254 W. 31st. St., 6th Fl., NY, NY 10001. Purpose: Any lawful activity. NOTICE OF FORMATION OF Law Office of Alexandra Bonacarti. Articles of Organization filed with the SSNY on 7/27/20. Office location: New York County.SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The address to which SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the PLLC served upon hi m/her is: One Liberty Plaza, 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10006. The principal business address of the PLLC is: One Liberty Plaza, 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10006. Purpose:any lawful act or activity. NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LuLaLoCDC, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 09/11/2020. Office location: NEW YORK County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC served upon him/her is: 210 W. 101st Street, Suite 6G. The principal business address of the LLC is: 210 W. 101st Street, Suite 6G.Purpose: any lawful act or activity Notice of Formation of EVENFEEL LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/27/20. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 3587 Hammock St., Las Vegas, NV 10001. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to U.S. Corp. Agents, Inc., 7014 13th Ave., Ste. 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228. Purpose: Any lawful activity. NOTICE OF FORMATION OF MOVING BODIES FORWARD, LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/27/20. Office location: New York County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC served upon him/her is: United States Corporation Agents, Inc., 7014 13th Ave, Suite 202, Brooklyn, NY 78717. The principal business address of the is 315 E86th Street #16DE, New York, NY, 10028. Notice of Formation of MOB Builders LLC. Arts of Org filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/21/20. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served and shall mail copy of process against LLC to 4610 Crane St, #401, Long Island City, NY 11101. Purpose: any lawful act Notice of Formation of PRIME 220E53-SAT LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 0 5/21/19. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 347 Fifth Ave., 16th Fl., NY, NY 10016. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Empire Management America Corp. at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

Advertising Section To place your listing, visit www.crainsnewyork.com/people-on-the-move or, for more information, contact Debora Stein at 917.226.5470 / dstein@crain.com

ACCOUNTING

CONSULTING

CONSULTING ENGINEERING

FINANCIAL SERVICES

Mazars USA LLP

Capalino

BHI

Mazars USA has named Wayne Pryor, CPA, as partner. He will lead the Healthcare Transaction Services Group. Wayne joins the company with more than 30 years of healthcare and transactions advisory experience and was previously the Healthcare Transaction Advisory Leader for a national accounting and advisory firm within the US. He has a deep background supporting platform acquisitions and divestitures, add-on acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, public-to-private transactions and more.

Capalino, New York’s leading urban strategy firm, is pleased to announce the appointment of Travis Terry to President. His role will include overseeing the firm’s expansion to provide guidance on real estate approvals, project financing, business operations strategy, market research, sustainability and social impact. Travis has played a lead role the past 18 years overseeing the firm’s operations, personally managing high-profile clients and ensuring the firm delivers on its corporate mantra of ‘We Get It Done’. He is the driving force behind Capalino’s commitment to assist businesses and not-forprofits in dealing with COVID-19 and providing thought leadership to the business community and the media on the recovery of New York.

Infrastructure Engineering Inc., PC

ADVERTISING / MARKETING

NYC & Company In his new role at NYC & Company, the official destination marketing organization and convention and visitors bureau for the five boroughs of New York City, Rondel Holder will be responsible for creating content for channels including NYCGO.com and developing partnerships with a focus on New York City’s cultural diversity and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) communities. Prior to joining NYC & Company, Holder served as Head of Marketing Production at ESSENCE. He is the founder of Soul Society 101.

ANNOUNCE

YOUR BIG NEWS

CONSULTING

Capalino Capalino, New York’s leading urban strategy firm, is pleased to announce the appointment of Mark Thompson to Executive Vice President. With more than three decades of experience successfully advising businesses, nonprofits, and cultural institutions, Thompson will oversee Capalino’s lobbying division and will assist in the firm’s expansion to provide businesses and nonprofits with the full range of services needed to recover and thrive in a postCOVID-19 New York.

IN CRAIN’S!

Clint Ferguson, PE, has been promoted to Vice President of Business Development at Infrastructure Engineering Inc (IEI). Clint will be responsible for IEI’s local and national business development strategy, working with its 4 offices to enhance client relationships, market growth and bottom-line performance. He brings a wealth of experience in capture strategy, project risk assessment, project delivery and client relations. Prior to this role, Clint served as IEI’s Chicago Operations Leader.

Gil Karni has been appointed CEO of BHI, the US arm of Bank Hapoalim, the leading financial institution in Israel. Karni will be responsible for the expansion and growth of the US operations. Karni’s career spans nearly three decades of corporate and commercial banking, and he most recently served as CEO of Bank Leumi’s UK operations. BHI provides comprehensive commercial banking solutions to middle market clients across industry sectors including CRE, C&I, healthcare, and tech.

FINANCE

FINANCIAL / TECHNOLOGY

Capalino Ventures

Payability

Capalino, New York’s leading urban strategy firm, is pleased to announce the appointment of Susan HinksonCarling to Managing Director of Capalino Ventures LLC, a vertically integrated entrepreneurial and real estate platform focused on identifying and executing on investment opportunities. Susan will oversee the effort to provide clients with the full multitude of services needed to manage business, nonprofit, civic and real estate initiatives from start to finish.

Payability, the NY-based fintech and Crain’s Fast 50 company, announced that Maya Pochiraju has been named Vice President of Product. Pochiraju will be based in Payability’s New York headquarters and will lead product innovation. Before joining Payability, Pochiraju was the Vice President of Innovations at Blackstone. At Payability, she will develop financial tools for small businesses and scale products to meet the exceptional eCommerce demand.

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C O N TAC T

Notice of Formation of ELMWOOD SQUARE HOUSING DEVELOPER, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/21/20. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 60 Columbus Circle, 19th Fl., NY, NY 10023. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Lauren Melesio Director, Reprints & Licensing lmelesio@crain.com (212) 210-0707

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES NOTICE OF FORMATION OF: Meridian Healing Services LLC Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 9/25/2020. Office location: New York County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC served upon him/her is: BUSINESS FILINGS INCORPORATED 187 WOLF ROAD SUITE 101 ALBANY, NY 12205. The principal business address of the LLC is 1177 Avenue of Americas, 5th Floor 10036

NOTICE OF FORMATION of Pilgrim & Associates Law Arbitration & Mediation LLC (LLC). Articles of Organization filed by the NY Secretary of State (SSNY) on 08/21/20. Office location: NY County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against LLC may be served. Post Office address where SSNY shall mail copy of any process against the LLC served upon it is c/o Pilgrim & Associates, 301 W 110th Street, NY, NY 10026. Purpose of LLC: to conduct any lawful act or activity. Street address of LLC is c/o Pilgrim & Associates, 301 W 110th Street, NY, NY 10026.

Notice of Qualification of ROUND SHRUB PRODUCTIONS, LLC. Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/30/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 10/19/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: c/o Paracorp Incorporated, 2804 Gateway Oaks Dr., Ste. 100, Sacramento, CA 95833. Address to be maintained in DE: 2140 South Dupont Hwy., Camden, DE 19934. Arts of Org. filed with the Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activities.

Notice of Qualification of Prithvi Ventures, LLC. Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/16/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 09/ 08/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Registered Agents Inc., 90 State St., STE 700 Office 40, Albany, NY 12207. Address to be maintained in DE: c/o Harvard Business Services, Inc., 16192 Coastal Hwy., Lewes, DE 19958. Arts of Org. filed with the Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activities.

DECEMBER 7, 2020 | CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS | 35

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