Rockland financial planner expands to Westchester
Eastern Planning Inc., a 16-year-old financial planning company in Pearl River, has opened a Westchester County office at 800 Westchester Ave. in Rye Brook.
Eastern Planning CEO Beth Blecker, who runs the business with her son, Matthew Blecker, company president, said the Rye Brook location is more convenient for their growing client base in Westchester and Connecticut.
Boston investor acquires Xand Corp.
ABRY Partners L.L.C., a private equity investment firm based in Boston, Mass., has completed its acquisition of Xand Corp., a Hawthorne-based data center infrastructure and information technology services provider to businesses. The purchase price was not disclosed.
Two partners with ABRY in the acquisition, former senior executives at communications and technology companies, will lead Xand”™s growth strategy. They are David Struwas, Xand”™s newly named CEO, and Robert J. DeSantis, the company”™s chief financial officer.
Lee Weinstein, former president and owner of Xand Corp., will remain involved with the business as a significant investor and serve on its board of directors.
Struwas said Xand will grow through both acquisitions and new builds. “Businesses are challenged with handling the expense and complexity of in-house IT functions and infrastructure and are looking to outsource these activities while reducing operating and capital costs,” he said in a press release.
Xand this year expanded its data center at 11 Skyline Drive in Hawthorne to 30,000 square feet of space. ABRY officials said the 21-year-old company is securing an additional 50,000 square feet for its operations.
BGC Partners completes Newmark deal
BGC Partners Inc, an international voice and electronic brokerage company that primarily serves large financial institutions, has completed its previously announced acquisition of Newmark & Co. Real Estate Inc., the commercial real estate brokerage and advisory firm. BGC in the deal also gained a controlling interest in Newmark”™s affiliated companies that include approximately 425 brokers.
Purchase terms were not disclosed.
Headquartered in New York, Newmark & Co. Real Estate Inc. operates as Newmark Knight Frank in the U.S. and is associated with London-based Knight Frank. Newmark Knight Frank operates in the Westchester County and Fairfield County, Conn., markets from its office in Greenwich.
The acquisition of Newmark is expected to boost BGC”™s earnings per share. BGC will provide fourth-quarter guidance that incorporates Newmark”™s business in BGC”™s third-quarter financial results press release and conference call on Oct. 27.
BGC officials said the buyer plans to aggressively drive Newmark”™s growth by attracting experienced brokers, investing in proprietary technology and capitalizing on Newmark”™s extensive domestic relationships and international reach.
“This acquisition is a game changer,” Howard W. Lutnick, BGC chairman and CEO, said in a press release. “By applying BGC”™s proven and powerful model of investing in people and technology, we expect to capitalize on and extend our relationships with top-tier financial institutions and introduce tools that will enable Newmark brokers to help their clients hedge against changes in real estate prices.”
Newmark CEO Barry M. Gosin in a press release said the deal allows Newmark Knight Frank to expand into new markets and products. He called it “a unique moment in the commercial real estate industry as we align best-in-class technology with financial products and real estate.
