Chicago Clearing Corporation
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Financial services |
| Founded | 1993 |
| Founder | James Tharin |
| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois , United States |
| Products | Securities class action settlement claim processing |
Number of employees | 20+ |
Chicago Clearing Corporation (CCC), based in Chicago, Illinois, specializes in securities class action settlement claim processing. Established in 1993 by James Tharin to facilitate trading of coupons derived from class action settlements, CCC has grown to a workforce exceeding 20 employees. Its clientele surpasses 1,000 entities, including bank trust departments, hedge funds, mutual funds, registered investment advisers, professional traders, and insurance firms. Collectively, these clients oversee roughly $2 trillion in AUM distributed across more than two million individual accounts.
Corporate Structure
Originating to assist a variety of class members involved in the Payment Card Settlement, the Chicago Clearing Family of Companies embodies the foundational principles of CCC:
- Chicago Clearing Corporation – Focused on Securities Class Actions
- Certificate Clearing Corporation – Handles Coupon Class Actions
- Mitena Partners – Specializes in Consumer Antitrust Class Actions
- Jackson Financial – Deals with Illiquid Asset Monetization
Significant Settlements
The growth of Chicago Clearing Corporation (CCC) has paralleled the increase in securities class action settlements.
- BMW M5 Litigation – Owners of the 1988 BMW M5 initiated legal action after the production exceeded the limited edition quantity promised. The 1993 settlement provided affected owners with $4,000 vouchers applicable toward future BMW purchases. CCC functioned as a market maker, enabling these vouchers to be traded similarly to securities.
- Linens Antitrust Litigation – In a 2003 lawsuit, New York-based restaurants accused linen suppliers of price-fixing conspiracies. The resolution included $6 million in cash and $3 million worth of vouchers. CCC facilitated the trading of these coupons as numerous clients discontinued business with the implicated suppliers.
- Bank of America – Resolving a securities class action for $2.425 billion with claims closing on April 25, 2013, this case involved Bank of America’s failure to disclose losses stemming from its 2008-2009 merger with Merrill Lynch. The omission led to stock devaluation and necessitated government capital injections. CCC submitted claims on behalf of 500 institutional clients and over 52,000 individual accounts, representing one of the largest settlements linked to the 2007-2009 financial crisis.
- Citigroup – Citigroup agreed to pay $730 million to investors over allegations of misleading financial disclosures between May 2006 and November 2008, specifically failing to report significant debt and preferred stock related to mortgage-backed securities risk exposure. Although Citigroup denied any misconduct, it settled to avoid extended litigation.
- Merck and Co. – After merging with Schering-Plough in 2009, the companies resolved a $688 million lawsuit concerning delayed disclosure of unfavorable cholesterol drug trial results that caused stock price declines. Investors in Merck received $215 million while Schering-Plough investors were awarded $473 million. This settlement produced substantial payouts within the securities class action arena, benefiting numerous CCC clients.