Raphael Stevens

In this articleWMTAMZNA Wonder truck parks near a customer’s house in Westfield, New Jersey.Christina Cheddar Berk | CNBCThe business is still in stealth mode, but there’s nothing covert about Marc Lore’s latest venture for residents of Westfield, New Jersey. Its purple and black vans congregate in the parking lot of a shuttered Lord & Taylor department store and line up across the street from a Stop & Shop supermarket. Generators hum as the vans wait to head out into the surrounding neighborhood to prepare freshly cooked meals. After departing Walmart at the end of January, the serial entrepreneur has joined his brother, Chad Lore, to invest in Wonder, a business that is part food truck, part ghost kitchen, CNBC has learned. Scott Hilton, a longtime colleague of Marc Lore’s and former chief revenue officer of Walmart’s e-commerce business, is Wonder’s chief executive, a person familiar with the investment said. Chad Lore also holds a top role, while Marc is serving in an advisory capacity, said the person, who requested anonymity since the business is still in an early stage. Marc Lore, 49, is most known for creating innovative e-commerce businesses and selling them to corporate giants like Amazon and Walmart.He helped found Quidsi, the parent of Diapers.com, and sold it to Amazon for $545 million in 2010. Six years later, Walmart paid $3 billion to acquire his next venture, Jet.com. Lore stayed on for four years, helping Walmart by overseeing its e-commerce division and accelerating the big-box retailer’s growth.Marc LoreSource: Walmart’A kitchen that comes to you’On its app, Wonder pitches itself as a “new home dining experience with a kitchen that comes to you.” It is being piloted in the northern part of Westfield, an affluent suburb that is home to many New York City transplants. Residents often move to the close-knit town in order to trade a cramped apartment for a spacious home to raise a family. Yet it’s likely that these families haven’t lost their craving for the fine dining options that are a convenient perk of city life. That’s the need Wonder is trying to fill. Its vans are outfitted with mobile kitchens, and a trained chef travels on each truck, ingredients in tow, to finish off meals once the vehicle arrives at each house. Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsSource: Lauren ThomasWonder’s goal is to deliver food that’s still piping hot when it reaches the front door. It tackles the pitfalls of takeout like limp french fries. And its salads aren’t soggy, since the vegetables were only tossed in the dressing moments before.Jay Zuckerman, a 47-year-old father of two who resides with his wife in the pilot area, said his family has used Wonder about six or seven times for dinner over the past few months. Each time, Wonder’s chefs have placed the meal on a foldable tray table at their door, packaged in more elegant containers than one would typically receive from a delivery elsewhere. “I thought it was such a different experience, and the timing could not have been more appropriate and needed during Covid,” said Zuckerman, a fashion industry executive. “It was like ordering from a gourmet restaurant, but you don’t have the issues of waiting, and you don’t have the issues of the food not tasting good because of transportation. It was a very high-end experience.” And it’s priced, accordingly. A dinner for four might be upwards of $100, he said.Wonder is sourcing its menus from top restaurants headed by celebrity chefs from across the country. The company has partnered with these businesses to re-create their menus and license their restaurant concepts, according to the person familiar with how the business works. Offerings include Bobby Flay Steak, The Mainstay by Marc Murphy, Frankies Spuntino, JBird by Jonathan Waxman, Fred’s Meat & Bread, and Tejas Barbecue, with such options as wood-fired pizzas, handmade pastas, New York strip and rib-eye steaks, and build-your-own family taco bar. Wonder serves meals from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Sunday to Wednesday; and from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday to Saturday, according to its app. Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsSource: Lauren ThomasThe business’ headquarters and kitchen commissary are in nearby Cranford, where Wonder’s trucks stock up on fresh ingredients to prepare the meals. Reactions on a Facebook group for Westfield moms run the gamut. Many people who say they’ve used the service have enjoyed it and plan to be repeat customers. But others find the inability to select a specific delivery time to be frustrating or even a deal-breaker.  Others gripe that they aren’t able to order since they don’t live in the limited delivery area. One member of the group joked about seeing if Wonder would deliver to a blanket in Mindowaskin Park, a nearby grassy area that is within the designated zone.But there are complaints, too. At the top of the list is the overwhelming presence of Wonder’s vans, which could be a sign that the business is ready to expand. “I’m starting to notice the density,” said Zuckerman. “I know that this is a pilot, but the density and the amount of trucks almost feels like the town has been taken over by these trucks. … All the sudden, it’s like Gremlins — like these trucks are everywhere.” Some nights, the meals sell out quicker than others, leaving potential customers hungry and looking for a quick dinner elsewhere. A spokesperson for Wonder declined to comment to CNBC about the demand it is seeing and about its expansion plans.The Wonder vans, seen here lined along Elm Street in Westfield, New Jersey, have become ubiquitous in the affluent town where the company is piloting its business.Christina Cheddar-Berk | CNBCBefore the coronavirus pandemic, U.S. consumers were eating more of their meals away from home. But that behavior sharply changed when states began implementing lockdowns last year. Using their stockpiled groceries, consumers cooked their own meals. They also ordered takeout and delivery, eating their meals at the kitchen table instead of inside a restaurant. The companies that catered to this shifting behavior saw soaring demand.Goldbelly, an e-commerce site that ships beloved restaurant and bakery goods anywhere in the United States, told CNBC in November that its customer count had nearly doubled in 2020. DoorDash reported that its revenue for the quarter ended Dec. 31 more than tripled, and its stock soared when it debuted in December. Meal kit company Blue Apron had been struggling, posting quarter after quarter of losses, but finally in July it posted its first profitable quarter since it went public in 2017. Industry experts and investors think many consumers will hold onto these habits, even as the country looks to exit the crisis. Wonder could capitalize on these new routines. But it’s still a challenging business. DoorDash, for example, is seeing surging revenue but remains unprofitable. And Blue Apron still grapples with how to hold onto customers, who often test out its service before ditching their memberships a few months later.”You could see there be a bit of a decline in on-demand food services, as people feel more comfortable going into a restaurant or to order takeout,” Technomic analyst Anne Mills said. “But I do think there’s still demand for it, because they do meet those convenience needs.”‘City of the future’When Lore left Walmart, he told Recode he aspired to create a “city of the future.””Imagine a city with the vibrancy, diversity and culture of New York City combined with the efficiency, safety and innovation of Tokyo and the sustainability, governance, and social services of Sweden,” Lore said. “This will be our New City.”Lore declined to comment to CNBC on Wonder. It is only one of a series of projects he is working on as he builds out a portfolio of investments, a person familiar with his plans said.He has also partnered with former baseball star Alex Rodriguez to purchase the Minnesota Timberwolves NBA franchise for a reported $1.5 billion. Wonder appears to fit into Lore’s bigger vision. It also is another attempt by Lore to cater to the needs of the time-pressed affluent consumer. Near the start of the Covid pandemic, he invested in a business called Nines Living, which is a private membership service that offers household staffing and management, including personal chefs, child-care providers, housekeepers, tutors and drivers.”There is a real gap in this industry and I saw an opportunity to invest in a company with a big vision to solve that deficit in service,” Lore said in a blog post on the company’s website.One of his earlier ideas, Jetblack, a personal shopping service that catered to wealthy moms, didn’t pan out and instead ended up being a money loser. He also helped to lead an acquisition strategy of direct-to-consumer and digital-first brands including Eloquii, Bonobos and Modcloth. Walmart later sold Modcloth, and more recently has said it will focus on incubating new brands internally.Lore still has to prove that he can provide a service that the wealthy want — one that is also a profitable business model.While Mills said the amount of money a food truck can make in a day varies widely, generally speaking, she said, they are a more affordable option to operate and to run than a traditional restaurant. “Still, they might not have that same revenue opportunity as a restaurant,” the food-service industry analyst cautioned.Ghost kitchens or virtual restaurants, which prepare food solely for delivery, have grown more popular. Thirty-five percent of people said they have turned to ordering from a ghost kitchen during the pandemic, more than they did before, according to a Technomic survey of 1,500 U.S. food-service users conducted late last winter.”The pandemic increased demand for these options because it was a way to reach consumers at home,” Mills said. “Food trucks kind of changed the [office park] model to set up more in neighborhoods. … There is an opportunity to gain a loyal customer base.”—CNBC’s Amelia Lucas contributed to this story. More

In this articleABI-BECarlos Brito, chief executive of Anheuser-Busch InBev,Eric Vidal | Reuters Shares of Anheuser-Busch InBev rose 5% in premarket trading after the Bud Light brewer announced that CEO Carlos Brito will step down, effective July 1.Michel Doukeris, who currently serves as the head of the company’s North American business, will take the reins from Brito.”The CEO announcement will allow investors to reformulate views on a company which appears to be at the start of a positive transition,” Barclays analyst Laurence Whyatt wrote in a note to clients.In addition to the succession announcement, Anheuser-Busch InBev reported its first-quarter earnings, topping Wall Street’s estimates despite lockdowns outside of the United States. Revenue rose 17.2% to $12.3 billion as the company faced comparisons to last year, when bars and restaurants began shuttering temporarily due to the coronavirus pandemic.Brito has held the role of chief executive for 15 years, starting when the company was only InBev. He led the acquisitions of Anheuser-Busch and SABMiller, transforming the firm into the world’s largest beer brewer and cutting costs along the way.However, in recent recent years, consumption of beer has been declining as consumers opt for substitutes like hard seltzer or choose to drink less — or not at all. AB InBev has added new products, like Bud Light Seltzer, to adapt to changing tastes.Michel Doukeris, North America CEO & President of Anheuser-Busch, speaks at the signing of a contract between Anheuser-Busch and the sun, at the Fairfield Brewery in Fairfield, California on June 5, 2019.Vivien Killilea | Getty ImagesJefferies analyst Edward Mundy wrote that Doukeris brings a “strong premium focus” to the company. He implemented the high-end division in China. He also has experience with e-commerce. The successor for Doukeris’s current role will be named before July.Shares of AB InBev have risen 6% so far this year, giving it a market value of $126 billion. More

A woman is administered with Russian Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine at a sports arena on May 4, 2021 in Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines.Ezra Acayan | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesLONDON — Russia on Thursday authorized the use of a one-shot coronavirus vaccine called “Sputnik Light,” according to the country’s sovereign wealth fund, a move designed to boost vaccine supplies in countries with surging infection rates.The Russian Direct Investment Fund said Sputnik Light, a slimmed-down vaccine developed by Moscow’s Gamaleya Research Institute, has an efficacy rate of 79.4% and would cost less than $10 a dose.RDIF said the shot, the first component of the country’s flagship two-dose Sputnik V vaccine, is compatible with standard vaccine storage and logistics requirements.It claims one of the potential uses of the single-shot vaccine is for the immunization of a larger number of people in a shorter time frame, noting it can be shipped at speed to a country in the midst of an acute outbreak.RDIF said late-stage Phase III trials involving 7,000 people were underway in Russia, the United Arab Emirates and Ghana, among other countries. Interim results were expected later this month.Phase I and Phase II results of the single-dose Sputnik Light vaccine found the shot demonstrated safety for all subjects and no serious adverse events were registered, it said.”The single dose regimen solves the challenge of immunizing large groups in a shorter time, which is especially important during the acute phase of the spread of coronavirus, achieving herd immunity faster,” Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of RDIF, said in a statement.Dmitriev said that while Sputnik Light had “an affordable price” of under $10, the two-dose Sputnik V vaccine “remains the main source of vaccination in Russia.””The Sputnik Light vaccine will be exported to our international partners to help increase the rate of vaccinations in a number of countries in the face of the ongoing fight with the pandemic and new strains of coronavirus,” he added.As of Wednesday, RDIF said over 20 million people around the world had received their first dose of the Sputnik V vaccine.”Sputnik Light will help to prevent the spread of coronavirus through the faster immunization of larger population groups, as well as supporting high immunity levels in those who have already been infected previously,” Alexander Gintsburg, director of the Gamaleya National Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology, said in a statement.”Sputnik Light offers strong value in initial vaccination and re-vaccination, as well as boosting efficacy when taken in combination with other vaccines.” More

Moderna CEO, Stephane Bancel attends 2019 Forbes Healthcare Summit at the Jazz at Lincoln Center on December 05, 2019 in New York City.Steven Ferdman | Getty ImagesModerna CEO Stephane Bancel said Thursday the company expects more Covid-19 variants will emerge in the coming months as the Southern Hemisphere enters its fall and winter seasons.Bancel, speaking to investors on a first-quarter earnings call, said people will likely need to get booster shots of its two-dose Covid-19 vaccine as the virus continues to circulate around the world.”New variants of concern continue to emerge around the world. And we believe that over the next six months, as the Southern Hemisphere enters the fall and winter, we could see more variants of concern emerge,” Bancel said. The Southern Hemisphere includes Africa, Australia, most of South America and parts of Asia. “We believe booster shots will be needed as we believe the virus is not going away.”CNBC Health & Science Read CNBC’s latest coverage of the Covid pandemic:Moderna says early data shows Covid vaccine is 96% effective in teens India reports over 412,000 new Covid cases as court demands plan to tackle oxygen shortage in Delhi U.S. backs waiving patent protections for Covid vaccines, citing global health crisis India’s worsening Covid crisis could spiral into a problem for the world The CEO’s comments come a day after the company announced a booster shot of its vaccine generated a promising immune response against the B.1.351 and P.1 variants first identified in South Africa and Brazil, respectively. The variants have since spread to other countries, including the U.S.The data was preliminary and had not yet been peer-reviewed.Moderna’s vaccine requires two doses given four weeks apart. Like Pfizer’s and Johnson & Johnson’s, the shot is highly effective against Covid, though company executives and officials now say they expect that strong protection to wane over time. Pfizer’s vaccine is also a two-dose regimen while the J&J immunization is just one jab.On Thursday, Moderna said sales of its successful vaccine helped drive its first quarterly profit ever.Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine generated $1.7 billion in sales, according to its earnings report. The company also raised its 2021 sales forecast for its vaccine to $19.2 billion, up from its previous forecast of $18.4 billion. Bancel said the company is “actively engaged” in discussions and agreements for 2022 with all of the governments is it currently supplying for 2021.Earlier this week, rival Pfizer also raised its vaccine sale forecast, predicting full-year sales of $26 billion. More

In this articleMRNAA nurse draws a Moderna coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine, at East Valley Community Health Center in La Puente, California, March 5, 2021.Lucy Nicholson | ReutersModerna said its Covid-19 vaccine is 96% effective in kids ages 12 to 17, according to early data released with the company’s first-quarter earnings Thursday.The young biotech company also said it plans to submit data on its vaccine for adults to the FDA for full approval later this month. Sales of its successful Covid-19 vaccine helped drive Moderna’s first quarterly profit ever. Here’s how Moderna did compared with what Wall Street expected, according to average estimates compiled by Refinitiv:EPS: $2.84 per share versus $2.39 per share expectedRevenue: $1.94 billion versus $2.03 billion expectedModerna’s Covid-19 vaccine generated $1.7 billion in sales, according to the earnings report.CNBC Health & Science Read CNBC’s latest coverage of the Covid pandemic:Moderna says early data shows Covid vaccine is 96% effective in teens India reports over 412,000 new Covid cases as court demands plan to tackle oxygen shortage in Delhi U.S. backs waiving patent protections for Covid vaccines, citing global health crisis India’s worsening Covid crisis could spiral into a problem for the world The company’s shares were down by more than 6% in premarket trading. Covid vaccine makers’ shares tanked after the Biden administration said late Wednesday that it would back waiving patent protections for Covid vaccines, citing the global health crisis. Moderna raised its 2021 sales forecast for its vaccine to $19.2 billion, up from its previous forecast of $18.4 billion. Earlier this week, rival Pfizer also raised its vaccine sale forecast, predicting full-year sales of $26 billion.Research and development expenses were $401 million for the quarter, the company said, compared to $115 million for the same period a year ago.”In the first quarter, the Moderna team delivered on its supply commitments to many governments and helped protect more than 100 million people,” Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a press release. “This accomplishment translated into our first profitable quarter in the company’s history, after 10 years of scientific innovation and several billion dollars invested to make our mRNA platform a reality.”Moderna, which was founded in 2010, was the second company to gain U.S. authorization for its Covid vaccine behind Pfizer. It has a deal with the U.S. government for 300 million doses, enough to inoculate 150 million Americans since the vaccine requires two doses given four weeks apart.Bancel said Thursday the company is “actively engaged” in discussions and agreements for 2022 with all of the governments is it currently supplying for 2021.On Wednesday, the company announced a booster shot of its vaccine generated a promising immune response against the B.1.351 and P.1 variants first identified in South Africa and Brazil, respectively. The data was preliminary and had not yet been peer-reviewed.”New variants of concern continue to emerge around the world. And we believe that over the next six months, as the southern hemisphere enters the fall and winter, we could see more variants of concern emerge,” Bancel told analysts on an earnings call. “We believe booster shots will be needed as we believe the virus is not going away.”The company released promising preliminary data Wednesday on its booster shot, designed to protect against the the B.1.351 and P.1 variants first identified in South Africa and Brazil. It found the booster dose in previously vaccinated adults increased neutralizing antibody responses against the original virus as well as the two variants, which scientists say are more contagious than the original Covid-19 strain. In teens, Moderna said Thursday its original vaccine was generally well tolerated with no serious safety concerns identified to date. The trial included more than 3,000 participants ages 12 to 17.The new data came as drugmakers and scientists say people will likely need a booster shot of the Covid-19 vaccines and possibly additional shots each year, just like for the seasonal flu.This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.Correction: This article was updated to correct the year the company was founded, which was 2010. More

In this articleEWSTHWINFIVAThe office building on Avenida Da Praia Grande in Macao, China, the address for multiple entities listed as investors in Hometown International, the owner of a single New Jersey deli.Catarina Domingues | CNBCYou can buy an actual sandwich at that mystery New Jersey deli — but good luck finding some of the biggest investors in the $100 million company that owns only that one eatery.A reporter for CNBC tried — hard — without success Wednesday to locate a group of four investment entities purportedly based in Macao, China, who comprise the largest shareholder group in deli owner Hometown International.One of those investors — cryptically named VCH Limited — also collects $25,000 per month from Hometown International for a consulting agreement related to efforts by the money-losing sandwich seller to merge with a private entity.E-Waste, a shell company with multiple ties to Hometown International, likewise is being positioned for such a transaction, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.While Hometown International operates a real Italian deli in Paulsboro, New Jersey — albeit a modest one with less than $37,000 in combined sales in the past two years — E-Waste has no actual business operations.Your Hometown Deli in Paulsboro, N.J.Google EarthDespite that fact, the market capitalization of both companies has topped $100 million in recent weeks, due to a seemingly inexplicable rise in the prices of their thinly traded stocks since last year, when overseas investors began taking stakes in the companies.The biggest single owner in both over-the-counter-traded companies is a Macao entity called Global Equity Limited, which holds 42 million common shares and warrants in Hometown International.Global Equity also is the largest shareholder, by far, in a third company called Med Spa Vacations, whose sole corporate officer, John Rollo, is the president of E-Waste.An SEC filing shows that Hometown International in February loaned Med Spa Vacations $150,000 at an interest rate of 6%. Med Spa Vacations says in filings that it is, like E-Waste, a shell company with no ongoing operations that likewise is seeking to combine with a private entity.Three other entities registered in Macao — VCH Limited, IPC-Trading Company and RTO Limited — each hold 10.5 million shares and warrants in the deli owner.Filings state that VCH Limited, IPC-Trading Company, RTO Limited and Global Equity Limited are based in the same downtown office building in Macao, a special administrative region of China and a major gambling mecca located less than 40 miles from Hong Kong.Mystery in MacaoExcept for VCH, whose listed address is on the fifth floor of that office building, the other entities are located on the first floor, according to their filings in Macao’s Commercial Registry Office.But a reporter found no actual offices of the entities at the building, or any other sign of them.Instead, the reporter found the offices of an accounting company and a related corporate services firm that seem to be acting as mail drops for the investors, and possibly providing other functions.Those other physical companies at the building are connected to one of Macao’s biggest and most prestigious law firms.Likewise, nowhere to be found at the address were the individuals who are identified in SEC filings as their managers and controllers of their stock holdings.Those individuals also do not show up in a search of SEC filings for any other company besides Hometown International, E-Waste or Med Spa Vacations.The owners of Global Equity, whose registration filings say it began operations in 2016, are listed as two men, Michael Tyldelsey and Ibrahima Thiam.Tyldelsey also is listed as managing director of VCH, which was created in May 2017.IPC-Trading’s owners are listed as Thiam and someone named Lan Moi Lilia. The listed owner of RTO Ltd. is a person named Nathalie Tina Pasaywon.Filings show that RTO was created on the same day in May 2016 as Global Equity.IPC-Trading began operations four months earlier that year.The office building on Avenida Da Praia Grande in Macao, China, the address for multiple entities listed as investors in Hometown International, the owner of a single New Jersey deli.Catarina Domingues | CNBCThe Paulsboro enigmaThe opaque nature of the entities’ ostensible address in Macao and of their managers adds even more questions to the already strange saga of Hometown International and E-Waste.Three weeks ago, Greenlight Capital hedge fund manager David Einhorn first raised eyebrows and sparked headlines about Hometown International, when he noted in a client letter that the company had an absurdly high market capitalization of more than $100 million despite owning only one tiny deli.Since then, reporters have scurried south on I-95 to buy reportedly tasty cheesesteaks and Italian hoagies in Paulsboro, and Hometown International has seen had its stock demoted from a mid-tier over-the-counter trading platform because of irregularities in its public disclosures. OTC Markets Group at the same time slapped a “buyer beware” warning on Hometown International’s stock.The deli company and E-Waste also terminated consulting agreements that had them paying a company controlled by the father of Hometown International Chairman Peter Coker Jr. a total of $17,500 per month after CNBC detailed those arrangements.Hometown Deli, Paulsboro, N.J.Mike Calia | CNBCLast Friday, Hometown International, in an extraordinary SEC filing, disavowed its market capitalization, saying that neither its revenues nor assets warranted such a high stock price. E-Waste issued an identical disavowal of its own stock price three days later.Hometown International’s lawyer did not return a request for comment from CNBC for this article.Not all of Hometown International’s owners are a mystery — or as much of a mystery — as the ones in Macao.The investor with perhaps the biggest public profile, Paul Morina, is CEO and president of Hometown International. He holds a whopping 30.5 million common shares and warrants in the company.Morina is renowned in New Jersey high school wrestling circles as coach of the team Paulsboro High School team, which frequently wins state titles.Morina also is principal at Paulsboro High, whose other administrators include Christine Lindemuth, the only other executive officer of Hometown International. Lindenmuth currently owns no shares of the company, according to SEC filings.Morina’s brother Carmel Morina is the elected sheriff of Gloucester County, whose environs include Paulsboro, a small town located just across the Delaware River from Philadelphia.Paul Morina has not responded to repeated requests to comment by CNBC for the past three weeks.Coker connectionsHometown International has three major shareholders that are based in Hong Kong.One of those, Maso Capital Partners, last year created a NASDAQ-traded special purpose acquisition company whose board members include Hometown International Chairman Coker Jr., who is based in Hong Kong.Coker Jr.’s own corporate interests include a financially troubled hotel in Macau — The 13 — which initially had marketed itself as the most luxurious hotel property in the world.The hotel, who initial investors included Steve Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors, Fidelity International, and Omega Advisors, has been closed to guests since February 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.Maso Capital’s leaders include Manoj Jain, a former managing director at the asset manager previously known as Och-Ziff.Jain holds sole voting and investment power for the two other Hometown International investors in Hong Kong. Those investors are corporate arms of the investment funds of two American universities, Duke and Vanderbilt.Jain controls more than 52 million common shares and warrants for Hometown International through the Hong Kong entities.Last week, Jain became the first person affiliated with the deli owner to publicly comment in the weeks since it gained notoriety for its bizarre stock valuation.Jain told CNBC in a statement then that he was “very concerned” about “serious allegations” surrounding Coker Jr.’s father, Peter Coker Sr., and others affiliated with the elder Coker’s North Carolina company.His comment came after CNBC documented the messy legal and regulatory issues involving Coker Sr. —who is a key investor in Hometown International — and people connected to Coker Sr., in addition to Hometown International’s accounting firm and the company’s first lawyer.Coker Sr.’s firm Tryon Capital was being paid $15,000 per month by Hometown International and $2,500 per month by E-Waste for consulting work before those deals were terminated last month.An SEC filing shows that Tryon Capital in February began leasing office space to the third company, Med Spa Vacations, which also that month entered into a one-year consulting agreement that pays Tryon Capital $2,500 per month.A Coker Sr.-controlled company called Hometown Global Services is the second largest shareholder, after Global Equity Ltd., in Med Spa Vacations. In its annual report filed in March, Med Spa Vacations said it had no revenue for 2020, ended the year with no cash, and had a loss of more than $46,000 for that year.Unlike Jain, the Macao investors have kept mum in the midst of the controversies over Coker Sr. and Hometown International.A visit to the Macao officesOn Wednesday, a reporter visited their legal address at 759 Avenida Da Praia Grande, a 15-story building called Lun Pong.The building, located in Macao’s central business area, is surrounded by architecture dating to the period when Macao was a colony of Portugal, and is five minutes away from Senado Square, the city’s focal point, and part of the UNESCO Historic Centre of Macau World Heritage Site.The office building on Avenida Da Praia Grande in Macao, China, the address for multiple entities listed as investors in Hometown International, the owner of a single New Jersey deli.Catarina Domingues | CNBCThe building’s lower five floors are owned by Rui José da Cunha, a founding partner at C&C Lawyers and Notaries — one of Macau’s top legal firms — which has its offices there.None of the Hometown International investors, nor any of their managers or owners, are listed by name on the directory in the lobby of the building.But a company called Gestores de Projetos Limitada — or Project Managers Limited, in Portuguese — is listed as a tenant of the first floor.That same floor — whose walls features Chinese calligraphy and a painting of the Ruins of St. Paul’s, a Catholic religious complex in Macao — is the legal address for all of the Hometown International investors in the city with the exception of VCH.GEP provides accounting services to small- and medium-sized business in Macao.”Whether you need to outsource your payroll tasks or to get an expert opinion on an investment opportunity in Macao, we’re able to assist you in a timely and cost-effective manner,” GEP’s website says.”We also work closely with one of the biggest law firms in Macao to assure your company stays compliant with the laws of Macao and to assist you in a wide array of services, including company incorporation or appointment and removal of directors,” that site says.When the reporter asked a GEP employee if they knew about Global Equity Limited, that person said GEP provides “services to this company,” indicating that Global Equity has an address in GEP’s office.The employee then called a partner in GEP, Rui Pedro Cunha, who told CNBC he was not familiar with the names of the entities known to be Hometown International investors.Cunha said that GEP services companies that want an address in Macao. Those client companies get mail delivered to GEP, which then forwards it on to the companies, he said.”Usually, we do that in the cases of companies that are using our accounting services,” said Cunha, whose father is the owner of the building’s bottom five floors and the C&C law firm.Cunha said that he would check to see if the Hometown International investors were among GEP’s clients.Cunha later emailed CNBC, saying, “I cannot confirm which company is (or isn’t) a client of GEP, but if GEP is handling mail for a company and receives mail for them, GEP will be sure to forward it.”CNBC then replied, asking him to forward requests to the Hometown International investors and associated people that they contact a reporter so that they could answer questions for this article, and comment for it.On the building’s fifth floor — the purported location of the investor VCH — there is another company called C&C Secretariado Limitada, or C&C Corporate Services Limited.That company provides auditing and accounting services, in addition to domiciliation and administration services to companies that have no physical presence in Macao.A person at that firm declined to comment to CNBC.— Catarina Domingues reported in Macau for CNBC. 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