NEW YORK, Sept. 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Remembering those who were lost by helping those in need; that's the meaning behind Charity Day at Cantor Fitzgerald, a leading financial services firm, and its affiliates, BGC Partners, Inc. and GFI Group. On September 11, 2018, dozens of celebrities – including President Bill Clinton, Mr.Tony Blair, Common, Saquon Barkley, Alec Baldwin, and more – participated in the firms' most successful Charity Day event to date, raising more than $12 million in a single day for various charities around the world. Charity Day also kicked off an effort to raise $5 million for Puerto Rico to help families affected by last year's Hurricanes Maria and Jose to rebuild their homes and their lives.
Each year, Cantor Fitzgerald, BGC Partners and GFI Group donate 100 percent of the global revenues generated on Charity Day to the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund and, to date, have raised approximately $159 million globally since its inception in 2005.
"I'm always touched by the incredible outpouring of support from the number of celebrities and distinguished guests who selflessly donate their time to Charity Day," said Howard W. Lutnick, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Cantor Fitzgerald, L.P. and BGC Partners, Inc. "Charity Day is a time to reflect and remember our friends, family and colleagues who sadly lost their lives on September 11th, and transform this tragic day into one of hope and new beginnings by giving back and making a difference."
In addition to the millions of dollars raised for many worthy causes, Cantor Fitzgerald, BGC Partners and GFI Group announced they are raising $5 million for the families severely impacted by Hurricanes Maria and Jose in Puerto Rico. These funds will be raised over the next several months, and prepaid $1000 American Express® cash cards will be distributed to 5,000 families in January 2019.
Charity Day is held in commemoration of the 658 Cantor employees and 61 Eurobrokers employees lost in the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks.
"On Sept 11, 2001 we had 960 employees and sadly lost 658 of those very special people and, today, have grown the firm to over 12,000 employees," said Edie Lutnick, President and Co-Founder of the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund. "We started Charity Day so we can impact others who are doing good work in the world. This is our way of giving back for all of the kindness we received from others when Howard and I lost our brother and the hundreds of employees who were our extended family. This day also enables us to create a legacy for all of these men and women who we cared about so deeply."
Esteemed guests representing participating charities joined licensed brokers on the trading floors to conduct transactions with clients. Celebrity personalities included President Bill Clinton, Mr.Tony Blair, Alec Baldwin, Common, Ken Daneyko, Gracie Carvalho, Tony Danza, Scarlet Fu, Thomas Keene, John O'Hurley, Walt Frazier, Jim Leyritz, Don Mattingly, Jessica Pimentel, LaChanze Sapp-Gooding, Norah O'Donnell, Kate Snow, Chris Cuomo, Len Elmore, Victor Cruz, Gayle King, Goldie Hawn, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Jenny McCarthy, Petra Nemcova, Carol Alt, Amber Heard, Saquon Barkley, Curtis Martin, Kimiko Glenn, Richard Lui, Lucy Hale, Steve Buscemi, Billy Crudup, Christopher Jackson, Darryl Strawberry, Rose Byrne, Melissa Rivers, Rosie Perez, Samantha Harris, Rosanna Scotto, Gretchen Mol, Mike Breen, Evan Engram, Kevin Shattenkirk, Mike Greenberg, David Muir, Nick Swisher, Gene Simmons, and John Franco.
To make a donation to the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund, please call (212) 829-4770 or visit www.cantorrelief.org.
About Cantor Fitzgerald Cantor Fitzgerald, a leading global financial services group at the forefront of financial and technological innovation has been a proven and resilient leader for over 65 years. Cantor is a preeminent investment bank serving more than 7,000 institutional clients around the world, recognized for its strengths in fixed income and equity capital markets, investment banking, prime brokerage, and commercial real estate finance and for its global distribution platform. Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. is one of 23 primary dealers authorized to trade U.S. government securities with The Federal Reserve Bank of New York. For more information, please visit www.cantor.com
About BGC Partners, Inc. BGC Partners is a leading global brokerage company servicing the financial and real estate markets. BGC's Financial Services offerings include fixed income securities, interest rate swaps, foreign exchange, equities, equity derivatives, credit derivatives, commodities, futures, and structured products. BGC's Financial Services customers include many of the world's largest banks, broker-dealers, investment banks, trading firms, hedge funds, governments, corporations, and investment firms. BGC, BGC Trader, GFI, Fenics, Fenics Market Data, Capitalab, and Lucera are trademarks/service marks and/or registered trademarks/service marks of BGC Partners, Inc. and/or its affiliates. BGC's common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol (NASDAQ: BGCP). BGC offers Real Estate Services through its publicly traded subsidiary Newmark Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NMRK). BGC Partners is led by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Howard W. Lutnick. For more information, please visit http://www.bgcpartners.com. You can also follow BGC at https://twitter.com/bgcpartners, https://www.linkedin.com/company/bgc-partners, and/or http://ir.bgcpartners.com.
Discussion of Forward-Looking Statements about BGC Statements in this document regarding BGC that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, BGC undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements. For a discussion of additional risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see BGC's Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including, but not limited to, the risk factors set forth in these filings and any updates to such risk factors contained in subsequent Forms 10-K, Forms 10-Q or Forms 8-K.
About Charity Day and the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund Every year, Cantor Fitzgerald and BGC Partners, in conjunction with the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund, commemorate our 658 Cantor and 61 Eurobrokers employees who perished on September 11, 2001 by distributing 100% of our global revenues on Charity Day to the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund and dozens of charities around the world. The Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund initially created to assist families of Cantor employees who were lost on 9/11, has since broadened its mission to provide aid to victims of natural disasters, emergencies, direct service charities and wounded members of the military.
Charity Day is our way of turning a tragic day into one that is positive and uplifting by helping others. We invite celebrity guests who represent participating charities into our offices to conduct trades with licensed brokers and their clients. To date, Charity Day has raised approximately $159 million for charitable causes around the world, and since its inception the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund has raised and distributed over $332 million. For information about the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund please visit www.cantorrelief.org.
Karen Laureano-Rikardsen Chief Marketing Officer Cantor Fitzgerald | BGC Partners 499 Park Avenue | New York, NY 10022 Phone: 212.829.4975 | 917.536.857
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