After years of litigation, a weight has been lifted off billionaire Charles Cohen.
Cohen has glad his debt of greater than $187 million to Fortress Funding Group, in line with a doc filed in New York Supreme Courtroom Thursday.
“Charles Cohen has at all times honored his private obligations,” mentioned David López, common counsel of Cohen Brothers Realty. “The pay-off of the excellent steadiness of the Fortress judgment is according to Mr. Cohen’s integrity and confirms his character as an honorable businessman.”
The debt cost begins to shut the guide on Cohen’s authorized saga with the creditor, who pursued him for ensures associated to defaults on a $534 million mortgage portfolio. The dispute and eventual judgment in opposition to Cohen led him to promote a number of Manhattan towers. Fortress, nevertheless, says it’s not executed with Cohen and can maintain pursuing different claims in opposition to him, probably resulting in different judgments.
Cohen has probably paid greater than $200 million to fulfill the judgment after attorneys’ charges and curiosity on the debt.
The battle dates again to 2022, when debtors related to Cohen took out greater than $500 million with him signing a warranty settlement on the transaction. Fortress sued in 2024 and Cohen in the end misplaced the properties that backed the unique portfolio later that 12 months, when Fortress took them in what was among the largest UCC foreclosures of all time.
An appellate courtroom determined in Fortress’s favor in February 2025, and a decrease courtroom entered the $187 million judgment one month later.
That didn’t finish the skirmish. The lender accused Cohen of shielding his assets, and Cohen declared he was working laborious to fulfill the debt. A receiver for Cohen’s possession pursuits was appointed by the courtroom this previous March.
Cohen bought off each 623 Fifth Avenue, a 36-story tower, and 3 East 54th Street, a 19-story tower, to Vornado Realty Belief for $218 million and $141 million, respectively. These offers generated $52 million in money. He later sold the ground beneath two Midtown belongings, 111 West thirty third Avenue and 1400 Broadway, to Empire State Realty Belief for $110 million, in line with Bisnow.
Fortress nonetheless has different instances pending in opposition to the billionaire. These embrace instances associated to a $30 million carry warranty and an alleged fraudulent switch of belongings. The lender intends to maintain pursuing these and should have to implement additional judgments in opposition to Cohen sooner or later, in line with a letter to the courtroom from Fortress’s attorneys.
Earlier this 12 months, Cohen lost 750 Lexington Avenue, dwelling of Cohen Brothers headquarters, at a foreclosures public sale.
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