VEREIT, Inc. was a

real estate investment trust A real estate investment trust (REIT, pronounced "reet") is a company that owns, and in most cases operates, income-producing real estate. REITs own many types of real estate, including office and apartment buildings, studios, warehouses, hos ...

headquartered in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

that invested in single-tenant retail, restaurant, office and industrial properties. As of December 31, 2020, the company owned 3,831 properties with an aggregate of 89.7 million square feet. The company was acquired by

Realty Income Realty Income Corporation is a real estate investment trust that invests in free-standing, single-tenant commercial properties in the United States, the United Kingdom, and six other countries in Europe. These properties are subject to NNN Leases ...

in November 2021. The company was formerly known as American Realty Capital Properties Inc. and it changed its name after an accounting scandal. Its name was derived for the Latin word "veritas", meaning truth.

History

The company was founded in 2010 by

Nicholas Schorsch Nicholas Sloan "Nick" Schorsch (born March 2, 1961) is an American millionaire entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist. Schorsch is the chairman, CEO, and co-founder of the investment services firm VEREIT. Early life Schorsch was born in Phi ...

. In November 2013, the company acquired CapLease, adding 68 properties totaling over 13 million square feet. In January 2014, the company acquired 120 properties from funds managed by

Fortress Investment Group Fortress Investment Group, LLC is an American investment management firm based in New York City. It was founded as a private equity firm in 1998 by Wes Edens, Rob Kauffman, Pete Briger, Michael Novogratz, and Randal Nardone. Overview When ...

for $601.2 million. In February 2014, the company acquired Cole Real Estate Investments, becoming the largest publicly traded net lease REIT. Cole was sold to CIM Group in February 2018. In October 2014, the company admitted to a $23 million accounting error and fired

chief financial officer A chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization who is assigned the primary responsibility for making decisions for the company for projects and its finances; i.a.: financial planning, management of financial risks, ...

Brian Block. Lawsuits alleged that insiders received over $900 million in fees from the company. In December 2014, Schorsch resigned as

chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

. In July 2015, the company changed its name to VEREIT. In September 2019, certain defendants agreed to pay $1.025 billion, consisting of $738.5 million from the company, $225 million from the company's former external manager and its principals including Nicholas Schorsch, $12.5 million from the company's former CFO Brian Block who was found guilty of

securities fraud Securities fraud, also known as stock fraud and investment fraud, is a deceptive practice in the stock or commodities markets that induces investors to make purchase or sale decisions on the basis of false information.auditor An auditor is a person or a firm appointed by a company to execute an audit.Practical Auditing, Kul Narsingh Shrestha, 2012, Nabin Prakashan, Nepal To act as an auditor, a person should be certified by the regulatory authority of accounting an ...

Grant Thornton. VEREIT also settled pending litigation by plaintiffs under Section 11 of the Securities Act that were not part of the

class action A class action is a form of lawsuit. Class Action may also refer to: * ''Class Action'' (film), 1991, starring Gene Hackman and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio * Class Action (band), a garage house band * "Class Action" (''Teenage Robot''), a 2002 e ...

for $15.7 million. On November 1, 2021,

acquired the company.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:VEREIT 2010 establishments in Maryland 2021 mergers and acquisitions American companies disestablished in 2021 American companies established in 2010 Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange