Written by D. Daxton White• September 12, 2021• 1:04 pm• Blog, Securities Fraud Articles

ATEL Capital Equipment Fund Investment Losses

The White Law Group is investigating claims involving ATEL Capital Equipment Funds.

Have you suffered losses in an ATEL Capital Equipment Fund? If so, the securities attorneys of The White Law Group may be able to help you recover your losses through a FINRA arbitration claim against the brokerage firm that recommended the investment.

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According to its website, ATEL Capital Group “provides everything from venture leasing for promising new firms, to large-scale equipment financing for some of the worlds most respected corporations.” The company leases a variety of equipment, including mining, transportation, construction, ocean-going vessels, aircrafts, and machine tools.

Currently, ATEL “manages an equipment portfolio of approximately $2 billion.” ATEL has offered a number of Equipment Funds in order to raise capital. Investors who purchased Limited Liability Units in ATEL Capital Equipment Fund may have been unaware of the high risks. According to the prospectus of one of ATEL’s offerings, ATEL Capital Equipment Fund X, the investment involves significant risks, including:

– No market exists for the Units, and an investor may be unable to sell his Units;

– The Fund expects to have more cash to distribute than taxable income, so, as in prior ATEL programs, a substantial portion of Fund distributions is expected to be a return of capital;

– The Fund’s performance is subject to risks relating to lessee defaults and the value of equipment at the end of the leases;

– The Fund has not specified all of its equipment investments; and

– The Fund will pay ATEL substantial fees;

Brokers Earn High Commissions on ATEL Funds

It appears that certain of the ATEL offerings may have decreased substantially in value. According to Central Trade & Transfer (a secondary market for private placement investments), ATEL Capital Equipment Fund X sold for $0.19 per unit in September 2020 and ATEL 15, LLC was listed for sale in March 2021 for $1.15 per unit.

According to ATEL Capital Equipment Fund prospectus, 9% of investors initial capital is used to pay sales commission and an additional 3.5% is used to cover additional offering expenses. These high commissions may be a motivating factor for brokers to sell these types of funds to unsuspecting investors.

Investigating Potential Lawsuits

The White Law Group is investigating potential FINRA arbitration claims involving the following ATEL Capital Equipment Funds:

ATEL Capital Equipment Fund VII
ATEL Capital Equipment Fund VIII
ATEL Capital Equipment Fund IX
ATEL Capital Equipment Fund X
ATEL Capital Equipment Fund XI

All broker-dealers have a fiduciary duty to disclose any risks to their clients. In addition, brokerage dealers have an obligation to make investment recommendations that are suitable for an individual given their age, net worth, investment experience and objectives, liquidity needs and risk tolerance.

Broker-dealers that have not done their fiduciary duty or performed adequate due diligence when selling investments may be held liable for damages through the FINRA arbitration.

If you have suffered losses in an ATEL Capital Equipment Fund investment and would like to discuss your litigation options to recover your investment losses, please contact the attorneys of The White Law Group at 888-637-5510 for a free consultation.

The White Law Group, LLC is a national securities fraud, securities arbitration, investor protection, and securities regulation/compliance law firm with offices in Chicago, Illinois.

For more information on The White Law Group, visit https://www.whitesecuritieslaw.com.