Nicholas S Schorsch

Mr. Schorsch controls: American Realty Capital Properties Inc., or ARCP, the giant traded REIT that Mr. Schorsch resigned as chairman from this week; American Realty Capital, the alternative investment manager and sponsor of which he is chairman and chief executive; and RCS Capital Corp., the publicly traded brokerage holding company of which he is executive chairman. Massachusetts' widening investigation of Mr. Schorsch's empire is related to a blockbuster defamation lawsuit by Lisa McAlister against ARCP, Mr. Schorsch, and David Kay, the former CEO of ARCP. In the complaint, filed on Thursday in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan, the former ARCP chief accounting officer alleges that she and another former top executive were made scapegoats by Mr. Schorsch and other executives for a $23 million accounting error cover-up that rocked the company when it was disclosed at the end of October. In addition, Mr. Schorsch served as Chairman of American Realty Capital Trust, Inc. (“ARCT”) (NASDAQ: ARCT), a net lease REIT he co-founded in 2007 and listed on the NASDAQ in March 2012. Just ten months later in January 2013, ARCT completed its merger with Realty Income Corporation (NYSE: O). From September 2002 until August 2006, Mr. Schorsch served as CEO of American Financial Realty Trust (“AFRT”), which he took public in 2003 (NYSE: AFR). Mr. Schorsch has over 30 years of business experience operating and building U.S. companies, including 20 years of real estate experience. He is the recipient of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year® 2003 Award and the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year® 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award for his influence on the direct investment industry. Mr. Schorsch also serves on the board of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (“NAREIT”) and Investment Program Association (“IPA”).