Building out of the ashes of the collapse of former child actor’s real estate empire

On the one-year anniversary of one of the largest private mortgage insolvencies in Canadian history a group of lenders has turned the millions of dollars they were owed into the foundation of a “mom and pop” private equity company that they believe offers the best chance of recovering their losses.

BIG North Capital (BNC) was formed by a collection of 177 different individuals and corporations that had been in some cases unwitting lenders to close to half the homes purchased by former child actor Robby Clark, who borrowed as much as 100 per cent of the price on more than 600 properties around Ontario between 2019 and 2023. When a severe cash crisis pushed Mr. Clark to file for creditor protection under the Companies Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) in Jan., 23, 2024, he was holding onto 405 properties and owed more than $144-million.