Consent Order  Condor Capital Corp.

Date:	04/09/2015
Organization:	Division of Banks
Docket Number:	2014-010 CO
Location:	Hauppauge, NY

Condor Capital Corp., Hauppauge, NY - Consent Order

COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS

Suffolk, SS.

COMMISSIONER OF BANKS
MOTOR VEHICLE SALES FINANCE
COMPANY LICENSING
Docket No. 2014-010 CO

CONSENT ORDER

In the Matter of

CONDOR CAPITAL CORP. 
Hauppauge, New York

Motor Vehicle Sales Finance Company
License No.: MV0449

WHEREAS, CONDOR CAPITAL CORP., (Condor Capital or the Corporation) a licensed motor vehicle sales finance company under Massachusetts General Laws chapter 255B, section 2, has been advised of its right to Notice and Hearing pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws chapter 30A, section 10, and having waived those rights, entered into a STIPULATION AND CONSENT TO THE ISSUANCE OF A CONSENT ORDER (Consent Agreement) with representatives of the Division of Banks (Division) dated April 9, 2015 whereby, solely for the purpose of settling this matter, Condor Capital agrees to the issuance of this CONSENT ORDER (Consent Order) by the Commissioner of Banks (Commissioner);

WHEREAS, the Division, through the Commissioner, has jurisdiction over the licensing and regulation of persons and entities engaged in the business of a motor vehicle sales finance company in Massachusetts pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws chapter 255B, section 2.

WHEREAS, Condor Capital is, and at all relevant times has been, a foreign corporation conducting business in the Commonwealth with its main office located at 165 Oser Avenue, Hauppauge, New York.

WHEREAS, Stephen Baron is, according to the Division’s records, 100% percent owner of Condor Capital.

WHEREAS, on April 23, 2014, the Superintendent of Financial Services of the State of New York (NYDFS) filed a civil complaint against both Condor Capital and Stephen Baron, in the District Court for the Southern District of New York, Case #: 1:14−cv−02863−CM (Complaint) pursuant to 12 U.S.C. §5552 for violations of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the New York Financial Services Law, and the New York Banking Law. The Complaint alleged that Condor Capital wrongfully retained customers’ positive credit balances, initiated steps to conceal positive credit balances from regulators, and failed to protect the confidentiality of consumers’ personal and financial information.

WHEREAS, on May 13, 2014, the Division issued an Order to Cease and Desist, Order to Show Cause and Notice of Intent to Revoke Motor Vehicle Sales Finance License (Order and Notice), Docket No. 2014-010 OTSC against Condor Capital as a result of concerns raised through the NYDFS’s Complaint.

WHEREAS, on May 27, 2014, August 27, 2014 and November 26, 2014, Condor Capital through counsel requested an extension of the Division to reply to the Order and Notice pending the resolution of the NYDFS case.

WHEREAS, on December 18, 2014, Condor Capital and Stephen Baron executed a Consent incorporated herein, for the purpose of settling the matters alleged in the NYDFS Complaint.

WHEREAS, on December 22, 2014, a Final Consent Judgment (Consent Judgment) incorporated herein, was entered by the Court in the NYDFS civil matter against Condor Capital and Stephen Baron. Condor Capital and Stephen Baron admitted to concealing from its customers and regulators the fact that thousands of Condor’s customers had refundable positive credit balances (i.e., money owed by Condor to a customer as a result of an overpayment of the customer’s account), failing to refund positive credit balances to customers, failing to protect the private and confidential personal and financial information of its customers, and applying a daily interest rate calculated based on a 360-day year, to a 365-day year thereby resulting in an annual percentage rate in excess of the one-eighth of one percent tolerance permitted under Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and Regulation Z.

WHEREAS, the Consent Judgment entered by the District Court for the Southern District of New York required Condor Capital, Stephen Baron and a court appointed receiver to engage in certain corrective action as detailed in the Consent Judgment.

WHEREAS, in recognition of the Division and Condor Capital having reached the following mutual agreement under this Consent Order to resolve the matters raised by the Order and Notice, the Commissioner has terminated the Order and Notice on this 9^th day of April, 2015.

ORDER

NOW COME the parties in the above-captioned matter, the Division, Condor Capital, and Stephen Baron and stipulate and agree as follows:

1. Condor Capital and any and all officers, directors, employees, or managers or their successors or assigns operating on behalf of Condor Capital, will cease engaging in the activity of a motor vehicle sales finance company in Massachusetts, as those terms are defined under General Laws chapter 255B, section 1.
2. Condor Capital’s motor vehicle sales finance company license is hereby revoked.
3. Condor Capital, and Stephen Baron will be prohibited from submitting an application to obtain a motor vehicle sales finance license or any other license from the Division at any time in the future.
4. Stephen Baron is prohibited from taking an ownership position in any entity licensed and/or regulated by the Division, including but not limited to a motor vehicle sales finance company licensed and regulated under General Laws chapter 255B. Stephen Baron is prohibited from participating, in any manner, in the responsibilities or duties of a control person of any such entity. For the purposes of this Consent Order, “control” shall be defined as the power, directly or indirectly, to direct the management or policies of a company, whether through ownership of securities, by contract, or otherwise.
5. Condor Capital and Stephen Baron shall ensure compliance with all corrective action as ordered in the Consent Judgment entered by the District Court for the Southern District of New York on December 22, 2014. The provisions of this paragraph shall ensure that Condor Capital and Stephen Baron provide evidence of all Massachusetts consumer reimbursements issued pursuant to the provisions of the Consent Judgment. Condor Capital and Stephen Baron must submit to the Division evidence of such reimbursements, including the consumer’s name, customers account number, the amount reimbursed, the check number and certified mail receipts to illustrate the Massachusetts consumers’ receipt of the reimbursements.
6. Condor Capital and/or the Receiver shall provide to the Division, a detailed record of the portfolio of Massachusetts loans sold to an Independent Purchaser pursuant to the provisions of section B of the Consent Judgment. The record shall be provided to the Division within fifteen (15) days of the sale of the loan portfolio and shall include the following: the Independent Purchaser’s name, including a telephone number of a contact person familiar with the portfolio of Massachusetts loans; and a record of the Massachusetts loan portfolio sold to the Independent Purchaser, the record must include: the Massachusetts consumer’s name, loan number, address and telephone number.
7. The provisions of this Consent Order shall not limit, estop, or otherwise prevent any other state agency or department, from taking any other action affecting Condor Capital and/or Stephen Baron, and/or any of its officers, directors, or managers.
8. This Consent Order shall become effective immediately upon the date of its issuance.
9. The provisions of this Consent Order shall be binding upon Condor Capital and Stephen Baron and its directors, officers, employees, agents, and their successors and assigns.
10. In accordance with the terms of the Consent Agreement entered by Stephen Baron, and the Commissioner, Condor Capital and Stephen Baron have waived all rights of appeal that they may have.
11. The provisions of this Consent Order shall remain effective and enforceable except to the extent that, and until such time as, any provisions of this Consent Order shall have been modified, terminated, suspended, or set aside by the Commissioner or upon an order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
12. This Consent Order and the Consent Agreement are the complete documents representing the resolution of this matter. There are no other agreements, promises, representations, or warranties other than those set forth in this Consent Order.

 

BY ORDER AND DIRECTION OF THE COMMISSIONER OF BANKS:

Dated at Boston, Massachusetts, this 9th day of April 2015.

By:

David J. Cotney
Commissioner of Banks
Commonwealth of Massachusetts