Loading organizations...
Cantor Fitzgerald is a global financial services holding company based in New York City that provides investment banking, asset management, capital markets, and prime brokerage services to institutional clients. Operating as a private partnership, the firm employs more than 13,000 people across its various global divisions, which include institutional equities, digital assets, commodities brokerage, and commercial real estate advisory. The institution has expanded its asset management capabilities through strategic acquisitions, including the recent agreement to purchase the O’Connor hedge fund unit from UBS and the earlier acquisition of Efficient Market Advisors. Following a 2025 ownership transfer by former CEO Howard W. Lutnick, the firm is now backed by prominent minority investors such as Josh Harris’s 26North and Glenn August. Cantor Fitzgerald was originally founded in 1945 by business partners Bernard Gerald Cantor and John Fitzgerald.
Key people at Cantor Fitzgerald.
Cantor Fitzgerald was founded in 1945 by Steve Kantor (Co-Founder of Cantor Commercial Real Estate).
Cantor Fitzgerald is a privately owned global financial services partnership founded on an entrepreneurial mindset, delivering fixed income, equity capital markets, prime brokerage, asset management, advisory, and investment banking products and technology solutions.[1][2] Its mission centers on providing specialized sector expertise, innovative products, and personalized services to help clients across industries achieve financial goals, with a focus on resilience amid market challenges.[1][2] The firm's investment philosophy emphasizes active value-add strategies in real estate, private markets, infrastructure, equities, fixed income, multi-asset, and cash management, serving institutional and high-net-worth investors through its asset management arm, which oversees billions in assets under management and advisement.[3] Key sectors include healthcare, power, renewables & infrastructure, technology, digital assets, industrials, metals & mining, financial institutions, and real estate, where it supports M&A, capital raising, and strategic advisory.[2][4] While not primarily a startup-focused venture firm, Cantor influences the tech and innovation ecosystem via equity capital markets, convertibles (raising over $125 billion in equity-linked capital), and coverage of technology and digital assets sectors.[1][4]
Cantor Fitzgerald traces its roots to 1945, when it was established as a pioneering financial services firm, evolving into a global powerhouse through innovations in markets and client services.[1][2] Key figures include founder B. Gerald Cantor and Bernard L. Gerald Fitzgerald, though modern leadership features Co-CEO & Global Head of Investment Banking Sage Kelly, who joined in 2016 and expanded the investment banking franchise across multiple sectors, and other executives like Global Head of Asset Management William J. Ferri, with prior roles at UBS Asset Management.[2][3][4] Pivotal moments include becoming a primary dealer for the US Federal Reserve, spinning out its voice brokerage into BGC Partners, and the tragic 9/11 attacks in 2001, which claimed 658 of its 960 New York employees—yet the firm rebuilt stronger, exemplifying its core pillar of resilience.[2] Over seven decades, its focus has shifted from brokerage origins to a full-suite platform encompassing investment banking, capital markets, and asset management.[1][2]
Cantor Fitzgerald rides trends in digital assets, technology, and renewables, providing capital markets access and M&A advisory that fuel innovation in high-growth areas like battery materials, infrastructure, and fintech-adjacent sectors.[2][4] Timing aligns with rising demand for flexible funding amid volatile markets, where its convertibles expertise offers lower-cost alternatives to traditional debt, benefiting tech and industrials firms scaling amid energy transitions and digitalization.[4] Market forces like institutional interest in real assets, commodities (e.g., uranium, precious metals), and cross-border listings favor its global network and sector depth, one of few firms active from exploration to production stages.[1][4] It influences the ecosystem by pioneering products, covering global companies via equity research, and enabling strategic partnerships that shape industries, including tech-enabled real estate via affiliates like Newmark.[1][2]
Cantor Fitzgerald's resilience positions it to expand in high-conviction areas like digital assets, infrastructure, and sustainable metals, leveraging Sage Kelly's sector growth and Ferri's asset management expertise amid global decarbonization and tech adoption.[2][3][4] Trends such as AI-driven markets, renewable energy booms, and tokenized assets will amplify its convertibles and prime services, potentially growing AUM beyond current billions.[3] Its influence may evolve toward deeper tech integration, like FMX Futures Exchange expansions via BGC, solidifying its role as a pioneer for institutional innovators—echoing its entrepreneurial origins in fueling ideas that redefine finance.[1][2]
Cantor Fitzgerald was founded in 1945 by Steve Kantor (Co-Founder of Cantor Commercial Real Estate).
Key people at Cantor Fitzgerald.
