Chaim Schochet
Born1986 or 1987 (age 37–38)[1]
EducationB.A. Rabbinical College of America
OccupationReal estate executive
Known forExecutive of Optima Ventures
SpouseRachel Schochet
Children3

Chaim Schochet (born 1986/87) is an American real estate executive, developer, and manager at Optima Ventures, once the largest holder of real estate in Downtown Cleveland.

Early life

Schochet was born to a Jewish family in Miami Beach, Florida,[1] He attended the Rabbinical College of America in Miami, New York City, and Toronto where he graduated with a degree in Judaic studies in 2006.[1]

Optima

After spending a year in Singapore traveling and volunteering, he returned to Florida and accepted a job at Optima Ventures, a real estate investment firm 1/3 owned by Optima International of Miami (co-founded by Schochet's brother-in-law Mordechai "Motti" Korf and Uri Laber), and 2/3 owned by the principals of the Privat Group, one of Ukraine's largest business and banking groups[1] founded by oligarchs Hennadiy Boholyubov and Ihor Kolomoyskyi. Korf and Laber owned 7% of the shares in PrivatBank Latvia,[2] a majority-owned subsidiary of PrivatBank headquartered in the Ukraine.

As investment executive of Optima Ventures, Schochet presided over the acquisition of a number of properties in Cleveland, Ohio including One Cleveland Center (purchased for $86.3 million in 2008);[3][4] 55 Public Square (purchased for $34 million in 2008);[3] the Huntington Bank Building (purchased for $18.5 million in 2010);[5][6] and the Penton Media Building (purchased for $46.5 million in 2010).[7] In September 2011, Optima purchased PNC Plaza in Louisville, Kentucky for $77 million.[8] In October 2011, Optima entered its first joint venture, buying the 472-room Crowne Plaza Cleveland City Centre hotel with Sage Hospitality Resources, a hotel developer and manager based in Colorado.[9] In September 2014, Schochet and Chip Marous proposed a $231 million renovation of the Huntington Bank Building, the second largest office building in the city, into a mixed-used facility combining offices, apartments, condominiums and a boutique hotel;[10] the renovation did not come to fruition and Optima sold the building to Hudson Holdings LLC for $22 million in 2015.[11] He has also made acquisitions outside of Cleveland including the 2008 purchase of the 1.5 million square foot former Motorola manufacturing facility in Harvard, Illinois.[12][13]

As of 2012, Optima Ventures owned more than 5 million square feet of real estate in the United States[1] and was the largest holder of real estate in Downtown Cleveland surpassing Forest City Enterprises.[1] Schochet describes himself as: "a long-term investor interested in any property that produces a healthy income."[14]

Lawsuit

In March 2016, PrivatBank Ukraine reduced its stake in PrivatBank Latvia to 46.5 percent removing it from the jurisdiction of Ukrainian regulators.[15] In December 2016, PrivatBank was nationalized by the Ukrainian government which required a $5.5 billion bailout in order to save it from collapse.[2] In 2018, PrivatBank was sold to private investors and in May 2019, the new owners filed a civil lawsuit in Delaware accusing Schochet, Korf, Laber, Boholyubov, and Kolomoyskyi with laundering up to $470 million in monies heavily relying on PrivatBank Latvia as a conduit.[2][16] Schochet was identified as being the "front man" in an illegal scheme with Optima, which was accused in the lawsuit of "financial crimes and money laundering" involving "hundreds of millions of dollars worth of U.S. assets — including major real estate holdings in downtown Cleveland."[2][17][18] In 2020, the FBI raided offices of Optima in Cleveland and Miami, in an ongoing investigation.[19][20] The attorney for Schochet, Korf, and Laber, Marc Kasowitz, stated that the lawsuit is "100% false and defamatory... and is "nothing more than a fictional orchestrated political attack" on his clients who vocally opposed President Trump at the time.[2] Trump adviser Rudy Giuliani commented that it should have been obvious that money laundering was occurring as Optima was overpaying for real estate and then selling at a loss.[21]

Personal life

Schochet is a practitioner of Chabad Judaism.[1][22] He is married to Rachel Schechter; they have three children and live in Miami Beach.[1][23]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h McFee, Michelle Jarboe (February 4, 2012). "The most important guy you've never heard of: Chaim Schochet, 25, builds downtown Cleveland empire". The Cleveland Plain Dealer.
  2. ^ a b c d e Boigon, Molly (February 21, 2020). "They gave $25 million to Jewish nonprofits. Was some of that money laundered from Ukraine?". The Forward.
  3. ^ a b "Optima International Purchases More Cleveland Property". Blumberg Capital. 2008.
  4. ^ McFee, Michelle Jarboe (May 16, 2008). "One Cleveland Center sold for $86 million". The Plain Dealer. cleveland.com - Cleveland Live LLC. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  5. ^ Bullard, Stan. "Huntington Building in downtown Cleveland sold to Florida's Optima International". Crain's Cleveland Business.
  6. ^ McFee, Michelle Jarboe (March 29, 2010). "Optima could add Huntington Building to its downtown Cleveland portfolio". The Cleveland Plain Dealer.
  7. ^ McFee, Michelle Jarboe (August 17, 2010). "Optima pays $46.5 million for Penton Media building in downtown Cleveland". The Cleveland Plain Dealer.
  8. ^ Karman III, John (2011-09-30). "Florida firm buys PNC Plaza for $77 million". Business First Louisville. Retrieved 4 October 2011.
  9. ^ McFee, Michelle Jarboe (October 6, 2011). "Crowne Plaza in downtown Cleveland sold; Optima, Sage plan $64 million overhaul as a Westin hotel". The Cleveland Plain Dealer.
  10. ^ Bullard, Stan (September 9, 2014). "Former Huntington Building would be revamped as mixed-use development in $231 million project". Crain's Cleveland Business.
  11. ^ Bullard, Stan (June 16, 2015). "Former Huntington Building to undergo $280 million transformation into mixed-use property". Crain's Cleveland Business.
  12. ^ Long, Jeff; Starks, Carolyn (August 15, 2008). "Motorola campus in Harvard has a buyer - Miami-based real estate investment firm looking at plans to lease shuttered facility". The Chicago Tribune.
  13. ^ Adkins, Lenore T. (August 14, 2008). "Miami firm buys former Motorola plant in Harvard". The Daily Herald.
  14. ^ McFee, Michelle Jarboe (July 10, 2008). "55 Public Square sells to buyer bullish on Cleveland". The Cleveland Plain Dealer.
  15. ^ Kozyreva, Tanya; Sallah, Michael (September 22, 2020). "With Deutsche Bank's help, an oligarch's buying spree trails ruin across the US heartland". International Consortium of American Journalists.
  16. ^ "VERIFIED COMPLAINT", May 21, 2019.
  17. ^ Ron Regan (August 4, 2020). "Company targeted in FBI raid in Downtown Cleveland embroiled in separate lawsuit alleging fraud; Delaware lawsuit alleges "financial crimes and money laundering"". WEWS.
  18. ^ CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H7910, September 25, 2019.
  19. ^ Allard, Sam (August 4, 2020). "FBI Raiding Cleveland Properties Owned by Ukrainian Oligarchs". Cleveland Scene. Archived from the original on May 3, 2021. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  20. ^ DUBELKO, SKYLAR (August 6, 2020). "FBI searches Optima Management offices in Cleveland, Miami". Cleveland Jewish News.
  21. ^ Trubek, Anne (January 14, 2020). "How Did Alleged Ukrainian Money Launderers Buy Up Downtown Cleveland?". Belt Magazine.
  22. ^ "Cleveland, OH - Orthodox Man Builds Ohio Real Estate Empire", Vos Iz Neias, February 6, 2012
  23. ^ "L'Chaim: Schochet - Schechter", Col Live, April 20, 2010.
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