Marcus & Millichap Officially Announces Mission Capital Advisors Buy

At the time, sources said they had expected the deal to close in the first quarter of 2020 but COVID threw a spanner in the works. Sources told CO in July that discussion between the sides began last year and that the transaction was basically a “done deal.”

Those sources said the motivation behind the merger was driven by the two firms discovering synergies between their loan origination and loan sales businesses and because New York-headquartered Mission was seeking to gain access to M&M’s local bank network, given M&M’s sheer size and scale — the firm closed 9,726 transactions across the country in 2019, with a sales volume of around $50 billion.

“Broadening our capital markets capabilities is a key  component of [our] long-term growth plan and we are excited to add Mission Capital’s complementary services and track record to our financing division, Marcus & Millichap (MMI) Capital Corporation (MMCC),” M&M president and CEO Hessam Nadji said in a statement. “Mission’s loan sales and consulting services will expand our lender relationships and client service offerings. Internally, their ability to collaborate with our existing financing and sales professionals will be synergistic to our overall business development. The debt and equity team’s track record of securing financing for larger and more complex transactions and equity advisory is highly complementary to MMCC’s core mortgage brokerage business.”

In its 18 years, Mission had grown to encompass debt and equity placement services as well as loan sale services — both performing and non-performing debt as well as real estate sales, separately — with outposts in New York, Los Angeles and Jupiter, Fla. 

M&M said in its announcement that the move will bring “40 capital markets professionals to [M&M] including producers, analysts and support personnel with offices in New York, Florida, Texas and California.” Sources said in July that as part of the merger, Mission principal David Tobin would continue to run the loan sale platform out of New York.

“As we explored joining forces with Marcus & Millichap, we considered the firm’s stellar reputation and dedication to outstanding customer service. We are attracted to the breadth of the company’s platform, commitment to growth and feel like-minded with the firm’s collaborative culture,” Tobin said in a statement today. “We look forward to adding value to the Marcus & Millichap team and helping the company scale and diversify its services.”

In September, there were rumblings that the merger might’ve gone sour or been interrupted, as CO reported at the time. Over the previous 18 months, Mission had seen a wave of long-tenured finance professionals depart for new opportunities, which somewhat diluted the strength of its operations, sources said. Because of the departures, sources said M&M was exploring nixing a merger and subsequently hiring those within Mission’s debt and equity advisory operation — led by principal Jordan Ray out of LA — separately. 

A spokesperson for M&M told CO late last month that it “could not confirm or deny” that new development. 

“I don’t know what the status of the sale is, but whatever is left of the finance group at Mission is being brought over to Marcus & Millichap this week,” one source told CO on the condition of anonymity the week of Sept. 21.

Ray said in a statement as part of the announcement that the “debt and equity team is eager to join Marcus & Millichap because of the synergies of our respective organizations. We see the value in Marcus & Millichap’s investment brokerage dominance and brand and respect MMCC’s leading market position on the financing side. We look forward to contributing to the company’s growth by bringing over a strong team with deep structured finance expertise.” 

Nadji added in a statement that M&M is “very pleased to welcome founding partners and seasoned professionals, David Tobin, Joseph Runk, Jordan Ray and Trenton Staley and their entire team to our roster.”