FirstService Buys Majority Stake in Cohen

FirstService Corp., a Toronto-based property services firm, has acquired a majority stake in Cohen Financial, Chicago, for an undisclosed amount.Jack Cohen, chief executive officer of Cohen Financial, and his senior management team will hold on to the remaining equity interest in the firm, FirstService said. Cohen Financial is a commercial mortgage banker and servicer, and also provides advisory services in the real estate area. The firm originated over $5 billion in commercial-real-estate-related loans last year, according to FirstService, and has a $5 billion commercial-mortgage-related servicing portfolio. "Cohen Financial's strong reputation and commercial mortgage and real estate investment banking expertise represent a tremendous addition to our growing commercial real estate operations and another opportunity to leverage our extensive broker network while offering a broader portfolio of services and knowledge to our clients," said Doug Frye, president and CEO of Colliers International, a company affiliated with FirstService. The companies can be found online at http://www.firstservice.com and http://www.cohenfinancial.com.