CIM Real Estate Finance Trust Ends REIT Status in CIM Group Combination
The securities litigation attorneys at Colling Gilbert Wright, PLLC are investigating potential securities claims involving CIM Real Estate Finance Trust (CMFT), formerly known as Cole Credit Property Trust IV (CCPT IV), after the company publicly disclosed (June 29, 2026) that it completed a fundamental restructuring that eliminates its status as a real estate investment trust (REIT). The transaction dilutes existing shareholders by approximately 32.5% and converts the fund into the public-facing holding company for CIM Group’s entire real assets management platform. If you invested in CIM Real Estate Finance Trust and suffered losses, our FINRA arbitration attorneys may be able to help you recover those losses through a FINRA arbitration claim.
According to the company’s June 29 disclosure, the transactions closed on June 24, 2026. CIM Group Holdings, LLC contributed CIM Group’s real assets management business and portfolio to a newly formed operating partnership in exchange for roughly 907.4 million operating partnership units and an equal number of special voting preferred shares — approximately 67.5% of the voting and economic ownership of the combined company, now renamed CIM Group, Inc. The fund’s existing shareholders retained the remaining 32.5% through their approximately 436.9 million common shares. The board determined the fund will no longer qualify as a REIT under the Internal Revenue Code, with the REIT election terminating effective January 1, 2026. For investors who bought shares at the original $10.00 offering price beginning in 2012, this conversion amounts to a fundamental change to the nature of their investment. Further, the new company has cautioned that the loss of REIT status may carry tax consequences for shareholders who held the investment through a tax-advantaged REIT structure and advised those holders to consult their tax advisor.
At the time of the conversion/merger, the board of directors set a new estimated net asset value of $5.14 per share as of December 31, 2025 — a decline of nearly 49% from the original $10.00 offering price. That valuation remains in effect for distribution reinvestment and share redemption purposes until the board approves a new estimate. CIM Real Estate Finance Trust raised more than $3 billion from retail investors before closing its offering in April 2014, and today’s estimated value reflects a substantial loss of principal for many of those original investors. Further, the company indicated investors may have to wait up to five (5) years before the shares may be liquidated and also reduced the dividend for at least the next three years absent a board decision to raise it, which is at its discretion. The company also agreed to use commercially reasonable efforts to pursue a listing on a national securities exchange within 24 months and to complete one within five years. If no listing occurs, the board must evaluate a recapitalization or other strategic transaction. In other words, shareholders face a multi-year wait before any potential exit.
Non-traded REITs like CIM Real Estate Finance Trust are complex, illiquid, and carry high fees and risks that make them unsuitable for many investors. Financial advisors have a duty to perform due diligence and to recommend only investments suitable for a client’s objectives, risk tolerance, and financial situation. If your broker recommended CIM Real Estate Finance Trust without performing the required due diligence and/or failed to disclose its risks, the brokerage firm may be held liable for your losses through FINRA arbitration. If you have suffered losses in CIM Real Estate Finance Trust, the securities attorneys at Colling Gilbert Wright, PLLC may be able to help you recover them through FINRA arbitration. You may contact us here for a free case evaluation. Thank you.
