It's Official: Markstone Settles with Cuomo
Last week, we noted an Israeli press report that Markstone Capital Partners was near a settlement with New York AG Andrew Cuomo, over its role in the state's pay-for-play scandal. Cuomo's office declined to comment at the time, but today announced that the report was legit. Israel-focused Markstone will pay back $18 million in fees related to a $250 million investment from the New York State Common Retirement Fund into Markstone's debut fund. It also has signed Cuomo's "code of conduct," which basically promises not to use placement agents for future fundraising efforts in the U.S. Not sure how much that last part matters, considering that: (A) I really can't imagine Markstone raising another fund, and (B) If Markstone does try to raise, it could focus on investors in Israel, where the code of conduct has no legal bearing.
