BRC Group Holdings Inc (RILY) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and welcome to the BRC Group Holdings, Inc. First Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. My name is Isabelle, and I will be your Evercall moderator. The format of the call includes prepared remarks from the company followed by a question-and-answer session. (Operator Instructions)

各位好，歡迎參加 BRC Group Holdings, Inc. 2026 年第一季財報電話會議。我是 Isabelle，將擔任本次 Evercall 會議主持人。本次會議流程包括公司預先準備的發言，隨後進行問答環節。（接線員指示）

At this time, I will turn the call over to Bryant Riley, Co-CEO of B. Riley. You may now begin.

現在，我將把電話交給 B. Riley 共同執行長 Bryant Riley。您現在可以開始。

Good afternoon, and thanks for joining our call. I want to stress by saying how enthusiastic our entire team is by where our firm sits today. The deliberate steps we have taken to strengthen our balance sheet and align our core operating platform have positioned us well to capture the current market opportunity. That conviction is reflected in our momentum, which carried over from 2025 into our first quarter.

各位下午好，感謝加入我們的電話會議。我想先強調，我們整個團隊對公司目前所處的位置感到非常振奮。我們為強化資產負債表並使核心營運平台一致化而採取的審慎步驟，使我們具備良好條件把握當前的市場機會。這份信念反映在我們的動能上，並從 2025 年延續至第一季。

For the first quarter, we generated net income available to common shareholders of $211.3 million and adjusted EBITDA of $262.2 million. Operating adjusted EBITDA was $34.6 million, up close to 40% sequentially. Net debt stands at $372 million, down approximately $255 million from year-end. Our CFO, Scott Yessner, will walk through the financials in detail.

第一季，我們為普通股股東創造的可分配淨利為 2.113 億美元，調整後 EBITDA 為 2.622 億美元。營運調整後 EBITDA 為 3,460 萬美元，較前一季成長接近 40%。淨負債為 3.72 億美元，較年末下降約 2.55 億美元。我們的財務長 Scott Yessner 將詳細說明財務數據。

My remarks today focus on 3 points: our first quarter execution, our strategic path forward and our ongoing commitment to our core franchise. During the quarter, our team executed against 2 key priorities: strengthening our balance sheet and delivering for our clients. On the balance sheet, we continue to optimize our capital structure. In March, we fully redeemed our 5.5% senior notes due 2026. We also retired $40.4 million of debt through bond for equity exchanges and open market repurchases through the end of March.

我今天的發言聚焦三點：第一季的執行成果、未來的策略路徑，以及我們對核心特許經營業務的持續承諾。本季期間，我們的團隊針對兩項關鍵優先事項執行：強化資產負債表，以及為客戶交付成果。在資產負債表方面，我們持續優化資本結構。3 月，我們已全數贖回 2026 年到期的 5.5% 優先票據。我們也透過債券換股交易及截至 3 月底的公開市場回購，償還了 4,040 萬美元的債務。

Altogether, total debt is down $129 million in the quarter, and we expect that trend to continue.

總體而言，本季總負債下降 1.29 億美元，我們預期此趨勢將持續。

While we enjoyed a solid quarter across the entire platform, B. Riley Securities delivered our most active quarter for capital raising in 5 years. During the quarter, we executed on nearly $10 billion in total debt and equity raises for clients. We acted as joint lead book runner on WhiteFiber's $230 million convert, participated in a (inaudible) $1.3 million follow-on and led key advisory mandates with the TrueCar take private. We are active across the entire capital structure.

雖然整個平台本季表現穩健，B. Riley Securities 創下 5 年來最活躍的募資季度。本季我們為客戶完成近 100 億美元的債務與股權募資。我們擔任 WhiteFiber 2.3 億美元可轉債的聯席主承銷商（joint lead book runner），參與一筆（聽不清）130 萬美元的後續發行（follow-on），並在 TrueCar 私有化（take private）等關鍵顧問委任案中擔任主導角色。我們在整個資本結構各層面都相當活躍。

We filed $8.7 billion in new ATMs in the first quarter, including a $6 billion facility for IREN and a $1 billion facility for SMR.

第一季我們申報了 87 億美元的新 ATM（隨時市場發行）額度，其中包括為 IREN 設立的 60 億美元額度，以及為 SMR 設立的 10 億美元額度。

We also expanded our research footprint, initiating coverage of 26 companies in the first quarter alone. We see a deep expanding opportunity set for our team in the quarters ahead and expect momentum to continue. Ultimately, our broader strategy remains straightforward. We reinvest operating cash flows into our businesses and compelling market opportunities with our core franchise serving as a primary engine.

我們也擴大研究覆蓋版圖，僅第一季就新增對 26 家公司的研究覆蓋。我們看到未來幾季團隊的機會集合將深度擴張，並預期動能將延續。最終，我們更廣泛的策略仍然很直接：將營運現金流再投資於我們的業務與具吸引力的市場機會，而核心特許經營業務則作為主要引擎。

Next year marks our 30th anniversary. And over the last three decades, we've intentionally built our business based on a commitment to be an active, dedicated advisory and liquidity partners for companies in the historically underserved small and mid-cap market. We have navigated every market cycle.

明年將是我們成立 30 週年。過去三十年來，我們基於一項承諾有意識地打造業務：成為歷來服務不足的小型與中型市值市場企業的積極且專注的顧問與流動性夥伴。我們走過每一個市場循環。

During periods of macro stress, we have stayed committed to the strategy while others have cycled in and out. This consistency and our commitment to this market have proven to be our structural advantage. That same commitment is why we launched BRC Specialty Finance to enhance our commitment to small and mid-cap companies by providing capital and liquidity solutions. We will continue to leverage our platform and put capital to work to back our clients and our long-term partners.

在宏觀壓力時期，當其他人進進出出之際，我們始終堅守策略。這種一致性以及我們對該市場的承諾，已被證明是我們的結構性優勢。也正是同樣的承諾，促使我們成立 BRC Specialty Finance，透過提供資本與流動性解決方案，進一步強化我們對小型與中型市值公司的投入。我們將持續運用平台並投入資本，支持我們的客戶與長期合作夥伴。

Executing our strategy requires absolute operational discipline and a world-class team. We're incredibly grateful for our team's hard work and continued dedication to the firm and our clients. I will now turn the call over to Co-CEO, Tom Keller, to provide additional context on our operating performance. Tom?

執行我們的策略需要絕對的營運紀律與世界級團隊。我們非常感謝團隊的辛勤付出，以及對公司與客戶的持續投入。接下來我將把電話交給共同執行長 Tom Keller，提供更多關於營運表現的背景說明。Tom？

Thanks, Bryant. In April, we announced our intention to repurchase the outstanding minority stake of B. Riley Securities and combine B. Riley Securities with B. Riley Wealth.

謝謝你，Bryant。4 月，我們宣布擬回購 B. Riley Securities 尚未持有的少數股權，並將 B. Riley Securities 與 B. Riley Wealth 合併。

We are incredibly excited about this. The proposed transaction streamlines our corporate structure, but more importantly, it intentionally aligns our investment banking, our broad retail and institutional distribution and our equity research engine.

我們對此感到非常興奮。這項擬議交易可精簡我們的公司架構，但更重要的是，它有意識地使我們的投資銀行業務、廣泛的零售與機構通路，以及股票研究引擎相互對齊。

Scott will spend some more time on the numbers. But from an operational standpoint, the platform is continuing to normalize from all the activity that has transpired over the last 2 years. Targus continues to stabilize their business, operating at roughly breakeven. We're encouraged by recent improvements in distribution channel sales as tariff concerns begin to ease.

Scott 會再花一些時間說明數字。但從營運角度來看，平台正持續從過去兩年發生的各項活動中回歸常態。Targus 持續穩定其業務，營運大致持平。我們對近期通路銷售的改善感到鼓舞，因為關稅疑慮開始緩解。

Our communications group continues to deliver high-margin cash flow by leveraging our team in India, and we remain relentlessly focused on efficiency across the entire enterprise. We are actively deploying AI, not just as a corporate efficiency tool, but as a force multiplier across our entire revenue-generating platform.

我們的通訊事業群持續透過運用印度團隊帶來高毛利現金流，而我們也在整個企業範圍內持續不懈地聚焦效率。我們正積極部署 AI，不僅作為企業效率工具，更作為整個創收平台的倍增器。

By equipping our bankers, sales force and research teams with advanced tools to accelerate analysis and insights, we are empowering our teams to scale their output and capture more market opportunity without proportionately increasing our cost structure. While technology allows us to operate faster and smarter, our core business is fundamentally a relationship business. Our ultimate differentiator remains our people and the partnerships we build.

透過為我們的銀行家、銷售團隊與研究團隊配備先進工具以加速分析與洞察，我們讓團隊能在不按比例增加成本結構的情況下擴大產出並捕捉更多市場機會。雖然科技讓我們能更快、更聰明地運作，但我們的核心業務本質上仍是關係型業務。我們最終的差異化優勢仍然是我們的人才，以及我們建立的合作關係。

In 2 weeks, we will host our 26th Annual Investor Conference at the Ritz-Carlton in Marina del Ray. With approximately 200 companies and 1,000 attendees, this conference remains the clearest expression of who we work with and the partnerships we build. During the conference, we will once again host our annual Big Fighters, Big Cause charitable boxing gala, benefiting the Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation in its mission to knock out pediatric diabetes. We are proud to have raised over $6 million for this cause since inception.

兩週後，我們將在 Marina del Ray 的麗思卡爾頓酒店舉辦第 26 屆年度投資人會議。約有 200 家公司與 1,000 名與會者，這場會議仍是最清楚展現我們合作對象與所建立夥伴關係的活動。會議期間，我們也將再次舉辦年度 Big Fighters, Big Cause 慈善拳擊晚宴，為 Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation 募款，以支持其「擊倒兒童糖尿病」的使命。自活動創辦以來，我們已為此公益募集超過 600 萬美元，深感自豪。

And next week, on May 13, B. Riley Securities is hosting our Annual Commissions for Charity Day, where 100% of our equity trading commissions will be donated to Children's Hospital L.A. For nearly three decades, our firm has been defined not just by the deals we execute, but by the relationships we build. While we are incredibly proud of our operational execution this quarter, these events reflect the true character of our firm and our commitment to our clients, our partnerships and our community.

此外，下週 5 月 13 日，B. Riley Securities 將舉辦年度 Commissions for Charity Day，當天我們 100% 的股票交易佣金將捐贈給洛杉磯兒童醫院（Children's Hospital L.A.）。近三十年來，我們公司不僅以完成的交易來定義，更以建立的關係來定義。雖然我們對本季的營運執行成果感到非常自豪，但這些活動反映了我們公司的真正特質，以及我們對客戶、夥伴關係與社區的承諾。

Our proprietary platform continues to serve as a major differentiator for recruiting, and we are actively leveraging it to add high-impact talent. We are fielding numerous conversations for positions across the company. And just last month, we welcomed back one senior sales trader as well as brought on an institutional salesman new to the firm. High-performing producers want to be part of a company where deals are actively getting done, where the platform supports them and where the culture is set by the fellow producers across our management team.

我們的專有平台持續成為招募上的重要差異化因素，我們也正積極運用它來延攬高影響力人才。我們正在與多位候選人就公司各部門職位進行洽談。就在上個月，我們迎回一位資深銷售交易員，並新聘一位機構業務銷售人員加入公司。高績效的創收者希望成為一家交易持續落地、平台能支持他們、且企業文化由管理團隊中的同儕創收者所塑造的公司的一員。

With that, I will turn the call over to our CFO, Scott Yessner, to walk through the detailed financials. Scott?

接下來，我將把電話交給我們的財務長 Scott Yessner，請他說明更詳細的財務數據。Scott？

Thanks, Tom. I'm pleased to share an update on our first quarter 2026 financial performance, investment holdings and capital and liquidity. To start, I would like to walk through our financial performance. Year-over-year first-quarter total revenues were $352 million compared to $186 million. The increase in total revenues was driven by $161 million of higher trading gains on investments primarily in Babcock & Wilcox common stock, $130 million of which is related to the value appreciation in the first quarter of 2026.

謝謝你，Tom。我很高興分享我們 2026 年第一季的財務表現、投資持股，以及資本與流動性更新。首先，我想先說明我們的財務表現。第一季總營收年增至 3.52 億美元，去年同期為 1.86 億美元。總營收的增加主要來自投資交易收益增加 1.61 億美元，主要與 Babcock & Wilcox 普通股相關，其中 1.30 億美元與 2026 年第一季的價值上升有關。

Service and fee income was $152 million for the quarter, lower year over year by $6.7 million. Investment banking and brokerage revenues increased $12 million, offset by lower revenues from exited businesses in the prior year of $10.4 million, lower B. Riley Wealth Management revenues of $4.6 million and lower Communications Business Group revenues of $4.1 million from normal subscriber attrition.

本季服務及手續費收入為1.52億美元，較去年同期減少670萬美元。投資銀行及經紀業務收入增加1,200萬美元，但被前一年已退出業務所帶來的收入減少1,040萬美元、B. Riley Wealth Management收入減少460萬美元，以及因正常用戶流失導致通訊事業群收入減少410萬美元所抵銷。

Next, year-over-year first quarter total operating expenses were $199 million compared to $247.5 million in 2025, a reduction of $48 million. The reduction was primarily due to a combined $28 million of eliminated costs from exiting businesses and the Communications Business Group subscriber declines, with the remaining reduction of approximately $20 million from across a range of operating expenses, including lower legal fees of $3.7 million.

接下來，第一季總營業費用年增比較為1.99億美元，2025年為2.475億美元，減少4,800萬美元。此降幅主要來自退出業務以及通訊事業群訂戶下滑所帶來合計2,800萬美元的成本消除；其餘約2,000萬美元的降幅則分布於多項營業費用之中，包括法律費用減少370萬美元。

Despite the lower operating expenses in total and in varying expense lines, accounting fees related to the audit and accounting activities was $4 million higher than 2025, which was also at an elevated level. We have returned to a normal operating calendar, which will allow us to drive infrastructure improvements that we believe will ultimately lower our accounting fees and other elevated costs.

儘管總營業費用及各項費用線均下降，與審計及會計活動相關的會計費用仍較2025年高出400萬美元，而2025年本身亦處於較高水準。我們已回到正常的營運行事曆，這將使我們得以推動基礎設施改善；我們相信這些改善最終將降低會計費用及其他偏高成本。

Continuing down the income statement. First quarter other income, excluding interest expense was $106 million, primarily due to a $99 million increase in the Babcock & Wilcox fair value appreciation. The company's total increase in the Babcock & Wilcox investment across trading income and unrealized income for the first quarter in 2026 was $229 million, booked in different revenue lines due to the investment being owned by multiple entities within the BRC Holdings structure.

繼續往下看損益表。第一季其他收入（不含利息費用）為1.06億美元，主要來自Babcock & Wilcox公允價值增值增加9,900萬美元。公司於2026年第一季在交易收入與未實現收入中合計確認Babcock & Wilcox投資增加2.29億美元；由於該投資由BRC Holdings架構內多個實體持有，因此分別記錄於不同的收入項目。

Year-over-year first-quarter interest expense was $20 million, a decline of $10 million from 2025, driven by lower average borrowing balances from senior note redemptions and other debt reductions. These details culminate with first quarter 2026 net income attributable to common shareholders of $211 million, diluted income per share of $6.57 compared to a net loss of $12 million, diluted loss per share of $0.39 in the first quarter of 2025.

第一季利息費用年增比較為2,000萬美元，較2025年下降1,000萬美元，主要受惠於因贖回優先票據及其他債務減少而使平均借款餘額降低。綜合上述因素，2026年第一季歸屬於普通股股東之淨利為2.11億美元，稀釋後每股盈餘為6.57美元；相較之下，2025年第一季為淨損1,200萬美元，稀釋後每股虧損為0.39美元。

First quarter 2026 adjusted EBITDA was $262 million compared to a loss of $45 million in 2025. Please refer to the reconciliation tables in our earnings press release for the adjusted EBITDA calculation.

2026年第一季調整後EBITDA為2.62億美元，2025年則為虧損4,500萬美元。調整後EBITDA之計算請參閱我們盈餘新聞稿中的調節表。

Next, I'll review our segment operating performance. Please note our former Communications business segment has been separated into four reportable segments, which we aggregate and describe as the Communications Business Group.

接下來，我將回顧各事業部門的營運表現。請注意，我們先前的通訊業務部門已拆分為四個可報導部門，我們將其彙總並稱為通訊事業群（Communications Business Group）。

The Capital Markets segment, which is comprised solely of B. Riley Securities, had first quarter 2026 total revenues of $172 million compared to $2 million in 2025, and segment income of $137 million compared to a segment loss of $36 million in 2025. The revenue and segment income increases were primarily driven by fair value increases in Babcock & Wilcox recorded in trading gains. Additionally, core investment banking revenues also increased $9.7 million year over year.

資本市場部門（Capital Markets），僅由B. Riley Securities構成，2026年第一季總收入為1.72億美元，2025年為200萬美元；部門利益為1.37億美元，2025年為部門虧損3,600萬美元。收入與部門利益的增加主要由交易收益中所記錄之Babcock & Wilcox公允價值上升所帶動。此外，核心投資銀行收入亦年增970萬美元。

Next, the Wealth segment had first quarter 2026 revenues of $52 million compared to $47 million in 2025, a $5 million increase. And segment income of $16 million compared to $2 million in 2025, a $14 million increase. The revenue and profit increases were driven by an $8.9 million increase in market value of carried interest in a fund that owns SpaceX for the portion owned by the Wealth segment. Wealth segment ended the first quarter with $11.9 billion in assets under management and 190 registered representatives.

接下來，財富管理部門（Wealth）2026年第一季收入為5,200萬美元，2025年為4,700萬美元，增加500萬美元；部門利益為1,600萬美元，2025年為200萬美元，增加1,400萬美元。收入與獲利的提升主要來自該部門所持有、投資於持有SpaceX之基金的附帶權益（carried interest）市值增加890萬美元。財富管理部門於第一季末管理資產規模為119億美元，並有190名註冊代表。

The Communications Business Group is the aggregate results of Lingo, magicJack, Marconi and UOL reportable segments. The Communications Business Group had first quarter aggregate revenues of $60 million compared to $64.5 million in 2025, a $4.5 million decline. And aggregate income in the first quarter of $12.6 million compared to $10.6 million in 2025, a $2 million increase. The first quarter results are in line with our expectations. The operating leverage continues to be a core business strength as demonstrated by the results.

通訊事業群為Lingo、magicJack、Marconi與UOL等可報導部門的彙總結果。通訊事業群2026年第一季彙總收入為6,000萬美元，2025年為6,450萬美元，減少450萬美元；第一季彙總利益為1,260萬美元，2025年為1,060萬美元，增加200萬美元。第一季結果符合我們的預期。營運槓桿仍是核心業務優勢，並由本次結果所證明。

Our Targus business, which comprises the Consumer Products segment, had first quarter revenues of $44 million compared to $42 million in 2025 and operating segment loss of $2.6 million compared to a loss of $5.1 million in 2025. After a period of declining sales, we are pleased with the revenue increase and the narrowing operating loss, which is due to improving the sales mix margins and lowering operating costs.

我們的Targus業務（構成消費性產品部門）第一季收入為4,400萬美元，2025年為4,200萬美元；營運部門虧損為260萬美元，2025年為虧損510萬美元。在經歷一段銷售下滑期間後，我們對收入回升及營運虧損收斂感到滿意，這主要歸功於改善銷售組合毛利率以及降低營運成本。

Next, I'd like to provide an update on the company's investment holdings portfolio, which is reported on our balance sheet in securities and other investments, loans receivable at fair value and equity investments. Investments are held across consolidated entities where valuation changes are primarily booked as revenue in either trading gains and losses or realized and unrealized gains and losses.

接下來，我想更新公司投資持有組合的狀況；該組合於資產負債表中列示於「證券及其他投資」、「以公允價值衡量之應收貸款」及「權益投資」。投資分布於各合併實體中，其估值變動主要以收入形式入帳，列於「交易損益」或「已實現及未實現損益」。

At March 31, 2026, securities and other investments increased $193 million to $640 million from December 31, 2025. The increase is primarily driven by a $229 million value increase in the Babcock & Wilcox investment and a $12.6 million increase in the partnership interest related to our marked value of carried interest in funds that own SpaceX for all BRC entities, offset by a sale exit of $41 million of private stock holdings, rounding out the balance change.

截至2026年3月31日，證券及其他投資較2025年12月31日增加1.93億美元至6.40億美元。增加主要由Babcock & Wilcox投資價值增加2.29億美元，以及就所有BRC實體而言、與我們對持有SpaceX之基金之附帶權益（carried interest）按市價衡量相關的合夥權益增加1,260萬美元所帶動；並由私募股票持有部位出售退出4,100萬美元所抵銷，構成資產負債表變動的其餘部分。

At March 31, 2026, the Babcock & Wilcox stock price used in the valuation was $14.69 a share with the company owning approximately 27.4 million shares. And the SpaceX carrying value was marked at $526 per share. Securities and other investments are reported in detail in the 10-Q with subtotals including public equities, private equities, corporate bonds, other fixed income securities and partnership interest and other.

截至2026年3月31日，用於估值的Babcock & Wilcox股價為每股14.69美元，公司持有約2,740萬股；SpaceX的帳面價值則按每股526美元計量。證券及其他投資的明細於10-Q中揭露，並包含小計項目，如公開股權、私募股權、公司債、其他固定收益證券，以及合夥權益及其他。

In the public equity subtotal, the Babcock & Wilcox valuation was the primary driver. The private equity subtotal amount, which has over 50 investments, including the venture capital portfolio, was lower by $42 million, primarily from the private stock holding exit described earlier. Partnerships and other investments increased $13.4 million, primarily due to the SpaceX carried interest value increase described earlier.

在公開股權小計中，Babcock & Wilcox估值為主要驅動因素。私募股權小計金額（包含超過50項投資，包括創投投資組合）減少4,200萬美元，主要來自前述私募股票持有部位的退出。合夥及其他投資增加1,340萬美元，主要由前述SpaceX附帶權益價值上升所致。

Continuing with investment holdings, loans receivable at fair value declined $1.4 million in the first quarter to an ending balance of $24.9 million at March 31, 2026. In the quarter, loan lending activity included approximately $20.1 million in fundings and $21.8 million in repayments. Also we received a $6.7 million loan recovery recognized through the income statement in fair value adjustments on loans.

續談投資持有項目，以公允價值衡量之應收貸款於第一季減少140萬美元，至2026年3月31日期末餘額為2,490萬美元。本季放款活動包括約2,010萬美元的撥款與2,180萬美元的還款。此外，我們收到670萬美元的貸款回收，並透過損益表於「貸款公允價值調整」中認列。

For the last balance sheet line item of our investment holdings, equity method investments were $90.7 million at March 31, 2026, virtually flat from December 31, 2025. The GA Group investment, formerly Great American, comprises $83.7 million of the March 31, '26 balance, also virtually flat to December 31, 2025. GA Group had good quarterly performance, which is disclosed in summary in the filed 10-Q.

就投資持有項目中資產負債表的最後一個科目而言，權益法投資於2026年3月31日為9,070萬美元，較2025年12月31日幾乎持平。GA Group投資（前稱Great American）構成2026年3月31日餘額中的8,370萬美元，亦較2025年12月31日幾乎持平。GA Group本季表現良好，並已於已提交的10-Q中以摘要方式揭露。

Next, I'll provide an update on our liquidity and capital. At March 31, 2026, cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash had total balances of $178 million compared to $229 million at December 31, 2025. In the first quarter of 2026, BRC reduced total debt by $129 million, which includes a $96 million RILYK bond redemption on March 30, 2026, and $40 million of bond exchanges and buybacks.

接下來，我將更新我們的流動性與資本狀況。截至 2026 年 3 月 31 日，現金、約當現金及受限制現金合計餘額為 1.78 億美元，相較於 2025 年 12 月 31 日的 2.29 億美元。2026 年第一季，BRC 將總債務減少 1.29 億美元，其中包括 2026 年 3 月 30 日贖回 9,600 萬美元的 RILYK 債券，以及 4,000 萬美元的債券交換與回購。

At March 31, 2026, total debt was $1.3 billion and net debt declined $255 million to $372 million. For the remainder of 2026, the company has two senior note series maturing, $167 million in principal amount of RILYN senior notes due September 30, and $170 million principal amount of RILYG senior notes due on December 31. These amounts have been reduced through Section 3(a)(9) bond exchanges since March 31. We also have $7 million in scheduled paydowns on a subsidiary lending facility.

截至 2026 年 3 月 31 日，總債務為 13 億美元，淨債務下降 2.55 億美元至 3.72 億美元。就 2026 年剩餘期間而言，公司有兩檔高級票據到期：其一為 9 月 30 日到期、本金 1.67 億美元的 RILYN 高級票據；其二為 12 月 31 日到期、本金 1.70 億美元的 RILYG 高級票據。自 3 月 31 日以來，這些金額已透過《證券法》第 3(a)(9) 條的債券交換而降低。我們在一項子公司借貸融資工具上也有 700 萬美元的既定攤還。

As previously described, we will continue to use capital actions, cash generated from operations and investment liquidations to fund market opportunities and the operating companies, while also redeeming the scheduled senior note paydowns. We look forward to answering your questions.

如先前所述，我們將持續運用資本行動、營運所產生的現金以及投資變現所得，來把握市場機會並支援各營運公司，同時也會償付既定的高級票據攤還。我們期待回答各位的問題。

I'll turn the call back to the operator for the Q&A session.

我把電話交回給接線員，進行問答環節。

(Operator Instructions) Sean, Charles Lane Capital.

（接線員指示）Sean，Charles Lane Capital。

Congrats on the quarter. I just had a few questions here. You guys touched on it a bit, but just can you kind of elaborate on your philosophy for kind of harvesting some of these gains that you have and maybe applying them to the debt, if that's your preferred use of capital?

恭喜本季表現。我這邊有幾個問題。你們稍微提到了一點，但能否更詳細說明一下，你們對於收割目前這些收益、並可能把它們用於償債的理念？如果那是你們偏好的資本運用方式的話。

So Sean, I think you touched on this last call. We are -- I think we've done a pretty good job of creating optionality. And that's really important. And that means -- optionality might mean buying back bonds in the open market, swapping bonds for other bonds. We sold some assets and repurchased bonds.

Sean，我想你在上一通電話中有提到。我們——我認為我們在創造「選擇性」方面做得相當不錯，而這點非常重要。所謂選擇性——可能代表在公開市場回購債券、用債券交換其他債券。我們也出售了一些資產並回購債券。

And so for us, we appreciate and we are asked often about our largest position. And we don't -- our head is not in the sand. We are taking all of our portfolio as one, and we will make the decisions, I think, that are in the best interest of the shareholders and the bondholders.

因此對我們而言，我們理解大家常常關注、也常被問到我們最大的持倉。我們並不是把頭埋在沙子裡。我們把整個投資組合視為一體，並且我認為我們會做出符合股東與債券持有人最大利益的決策。

So there's not a -- I think I said last time, there's no playbook in this business. DDI, which is a big position for us, is trying to go private. We have $40 million of that. SpaceX, we didn't really value nearly as high a year ago as it is today, and that's on our books for over $50 million. So there's a fair amount of cash, and we've got investments.

所以這裡沒有——我想我上次說過，這個行業沒有固定劇本。DDI 是我們的一個大部位，正在嘗試私有化；我們持有其中 4,000 萬美元。SpaceX，一年前我們對它的估值遠沒有今天這麼高，而我們帳上對它的持有超過 5,000 萬美元。所以我們有相當多的現金，也有投資部位。

So it is a daily discussion and analysis, but I can't -- I just can't give you the answer that you want, which is A, B, C, D. We are being very active and I think thoughtful about where do we invest in the business, where do we invest to grow the business, when do we buy back bonds, what's the right price to buy back bonds, when do we swap bonds and all of those things.

因此這是每天都在討論與分析的事情，但我——我就是無法給你想要的那種答案，也就是 A、B、C、D。我們非常積極，而且我認為也很審慎地在思考：我們要把資金投到哪裡來經營業務、投到哪裡來成長、何時回購債券、回購債券的合理價格是多少、何時進行債券交換，以及所有這些事情。

Okay. Fair enough. And then on the merger with the Wealth division, I might have missed it, but have you put out any sort of quantitative synergies that you think you're going to realize out of that?

好的，可以理解。接著關於與 Wealth 事業部的合併，我可能漏聽了，但你們是否有公布任何你們認為將可實現的量化協同效益？

We haven't. And I think from my perspective, and Scott can touch on this a little bit, there's a lot of onetime costs that we have had to deal with as we've gotten our financials current. And our team has done an amazing job of getting our financials current.

我們還沒有。我從我的角度來看——Scott 也可以補充——在我們把財務報表補齊並維持最新的過程中，我們必須處理許多一次性成本。我們的團隊在讓財務報表維持最新方面做得非常出色。

But it was just a massive group of people. And we've been -- we are now at a point where we're on a normal cadence where we can really focus on that, not that we haven't been focusing on it, but we're not -- not everything is a mad rush.

但那是一個非常龐大的團隊投入。我們——我們現在已經到了正常節奏的階段，能夠真正把重心放在那上面；不是說我們之前沒有在做，而是我們不再——不再所有事情都像在瘋狂趕工。

And so as we look through our overall corporation and then we look through the subsidiaries and the mergers, we'll be more clear now that we can really, I won't say focus is the wrong word, but maybe focus on some of those things and not just the mad scramble to get our financials current.

因此，當我們檢視整體公司，並進一步檢視子公司與合併事項時，現在我們會更清楚，因為我們真的可以——我不想說「專注」這個詞不對，但也許是能把注意力放在其中一些事情上，而不只是為了讓財務報表跟上進度而手忙腳亂。

Scott, anything you want to add on that?

Scott，你有什麼想補充的嗎？

Bryant, I think you touched on the important points there. The merger is going to have synergies across revenues and cost lines, and those are in the early parts. And early on, we're focusing in on the client side and the connectivity between the wealth and the retail -- the wealth retail side and the institutional part of the business. So that client focus and that connectivity is sort of the top part as we -- in the back office sort of determine what the right steps are in there.

Bryant，我想你已經點出了重點。這次合併在營收端與成本端都會帶來協同效益，而目前仍在早期階段。一開始，我們會聚焦在客戶端，以及財富與零售——也就是財富零售端——與機構業務之間的連結。因此，當我們——在後台逐步釐清正確的推進步驟時，客戶聚焦與連結性會是我們優先處理的部分。

But I'd echo Bryant's comments with respect to we're really just in the early innings of evaluating our operating cost structure at the company and coming out of a very intensive period and now we're going to have a very normal operating environment. That's going to give us a lot of bandwidth to evaluate our cost structure. And there are some easy wins in this.

但我也呼應 Bryant 的看法：我們其實才剛進入評估公司營運成本結構的早期階段；我們剛走出一段非常密集的期間，接下來將進入非常正常的營運環境。這會讓我們有更多餘裕去評估成本結構，而其中有一些是很容易達成的成果。

Our audit fees were high just due to the demands we had put on our auditor and with the normal timeline that we're going to be able to use this year, that's a pretty easy win for us. And we have several of those across the entity in different parts of our business and operating expenses.

我們的審計費用偏高，主要是因為我們對審計師提出了很高的需求；而今年我們將能採用正常的時程，這對我們來說是相當容易的改善項目。我們在整個公司不同部門、不同業務與營運費用上，也有好幾個類似的改善機會。

So now we're still seeing at the directional, hey, there's a lot of opportunity the OpEx has. And I understand that, that's not as easily calculatable into a model. But in the future quarters, when we start realizing those and have more dimension, Bryant can share you more specifics.

所以目前我們仍然是從方向性來看：嘿，營運費用（OpEx）有很大的改善空間。我理解這點不太容易直接量化並放進模型裡。但在未來幾季，當我們開始實現這些改善、並且有更多細節時，Bryant 可以向你分享更具體的內容。

Got it. And then just lastly, just because you called it out in the release. For the 26 initiations in the quarter, how much of that is attributable to new hires versus kind of increasing coverage for existing hires?

了解。最後一個問題，因為你們在新聞稿中特別提到：本季新增的 26 項啟動（initiations）中，有多少可歸因於新聘人員， versus 主要是既有人員擴大覆蓋範圍？

So I'm going to -- I don't have that number handy, but I'm just going to -- just a general thesis. I think that the world is much more efficient given all the capabilities of everything, everything from AI. And so just the ability to gather information, the ability to -- I think a research analyst 12 years ago, it would have been 12 to 15 companies per analyst. And if you can't get to 25, I think that would be -- you're just able to sell information quicker. You don't have to download every 10-K and 10-Q and make your analysis faster.

我——我手邊沒有那個數字，但我先講一個大方向的論點。我認為在各種能力的加持下，世界變得更有效率，包含 AI 在內的各種工具。因此，蒐集資訊的能力、以及——我認為 12 年前，一位研究分析師大概會覆蓋 12 到 15 家公司。而如果你做不到 25 家，我覺得那會——因為你現在能更快地傳遞資訊。你不必把每一份 10-K 和 10-Q 都下載下來，分析也能更快完成。

So yes, I think that the vast majority of that is just from analysts that are already on board.

所以是的，我認為其中絕大多數都來自已經在團隊裡的分析師。

Griffin, Owl Creek Asset Management.

Griffin，Owl Creek Asset Management。

Congrats on the good trajectory here. It looks like the clouds are starting to part. I was hoping you could provide some further clarification on a couple of things. I guess the first thing is, can you kind of walk through the rationale of buying back the minority stake of BRS? Initially, we thought that this was another lever that you had created to potentially partially monetize to help with the cap structure.

恭喜你們有不錯的發展軌跡。看起來烏雲正在散去。我希望你們能就幾件事提供更進一步的說明。我想第一個是：你們能否說明一下回購 BRS 少數股權的理由？一開始我們以為這是你們創造出的另一個槓桿，可能可以部分變現，以協助資本結構。

And now it seems like you're walking back that. Can you kind of help us understand the rationale behind that?

而現在看起來你們似乎正在收回那個做法。你能否幫我們理解一下背後的理由？

Yes. I think we laid that out when we made the announcement. When we carved that out, it was a different time. I mean we have to acknowledge it was in the middle of a very unique situation for us and carving it out and separating it at that time felt like the best thing to do for keeping people and for managing the business and from circling and ring-fencing it. I think as we've gotten through and as you said, are seeing some bluer skies, we have balance sheets that have been separated and utilized in different ways and now can be utilized in one way.

是的。我想我們在發布公告時已經說明了。當我們把它切割出去時，那是不同的時期。我們必須承認，當時正處於對我們而言非常特殊的情況之中；在那個時間點把它切割並分離，對於留住人員、管理業務，以及把它圈定並進行隔離（ring-fencing）而言，感覺是最好的做法。我認為隨著我們走過那段時間，正如你所說，現在看到一些更晴朗的天空，我們的資產負債表已經被分開並以不同方式運用，而現在可以用一種方式來運用。

So you might have a -- BRS had a lot of money at the money market of 4% as a broker-dealer while we're on corporate, utilizing money at much higher rates. And then there's also operating synergies.

所以你可能會有——BRS 作為券商（broker-dealer）在 4% 的貨幣市場上放了很多資金，而我們在公司端則以更高的利率在使用資金。此外也有營運協同效益。

And we still think that, that business could be very easily separated if we needed to do that or if somebody came along and determined that, that was worth the value that we thought it was worth. But in the near term, just from a cost of capital perspective, from an operating efficiencies perspective, we felt like that was the right thing to do. TK or Scott, anything you want to add to that?

而且我們仍然認為，如果需要，該業務可以非常容易地再度分拆；或者如果有人出現並認定它的價值就是我們所認為的那個價值，也可以。但在短期內，從資本成本角度、從營運效率角度來看，我們覺得這是正確的做法。TK 或 Scott，你們有什麼想補充的嗎？

Yes. I would just say, again, a year ago, two years ago, different landscape. And again, a big part of the reason was just the optionality. You heard earlier, that's one of our focuses here to make sure that we're in the right position to take advantage of whatever situation we find ourselves in. And we went down that road.

是的。我只想說，再次強調，一年前、兩年前，環境不同。而且其中很大一部分原因就是彈性（optionality）。你先前也聽到，這是我們在這裡的重點之一：確保我們處於正確的位置，以便能把握我們所處的任何情境。我們當時就沿著那條路走了。

A year later, 1.5 years later, the landscape has changed. And it has proven to be operationally really challenging among other reasons. So rather than persist with what we're doing, we're going to simplify our lives and put it back to the way it was.

一年後、1.5 年後，環境已經改變。而且事實證明，除了其他原因之外，在營運上確實非常具挑戰性。因此，我們不再堅持目前的做法，而是要簡化我們的生活，把它恢復到原來的樣子。

So can I infer that ex sale of BRS, you think you have all the solutions necessary in-house to solve the 26s?

所以我是否可以推論，若不出售 BRS，你們認為公司內部已具備解決 26s 所需的所有方案？

Yes.

是的。

Okay. Understood. And then I guess one of the statements you made, which I thought was obviously great is we have seen the most deal activity in five years in BRS in terms of capital raising. And maybe I missed the nuance on that. But it doesn't look like that massive increase is showing up in the numbers. Is that because of you're trying to regain market share with lower pricing? Or is that -- can you kind of help me out there?

好的，了解。然後我想你提到的一句話——我覺得顯然很棒——是就資本募集而言，BRS 的交易活動是五年來最多。也許我漏掉了其中的細微差別，但看起來那個大幅增加並沒有在數字上反映出來。這是因為你們為了重新奪回市占而採取較低的定價嗎？還是——你能幫我解釋一下嗎？

So we are -- yes, so if we are 30% of a deal, that's obviously a lot more valuable than [5%] of a deal. And so I think over the -- what I've been super impressed with is that companies value our research and value our distribution. The noise that has surrounded us and is dissipating, and actually, I'm hopeful, turns the other way, but as it surrounded us, those percentages of those deals, we lost economics. So ideally, we would rather be a smaller number and be 100% of the economics.

所以我們——是的，如果我們在一筆交易中占 30%，那顯然比占 [5%] 更有價值。因此我認為，在這段期間讓我非常印象深刻的是，公司重視我們的研究，也重視我們的通路分銷能力。圍繞著我們的雜音正在消散；而且我也希望它會反向發展。但在雜音圍繞我們的期間，那些交易中的占比下降了，我們的經濟利益也流失了。所以理想狀況下，我們寧可筆數少一些，但能拿到 100% 的經濟利益。

But I think it speaks to our position. I think it speaks to the value that we provide to companies and to the markets. And as we've been playing, I think, with one hand behind our back. We haven't had our financials current. We've had to spend a lot of time on that.

但我認為這反映了我們的地位，也反映了我們為公司與市場提供的價值。而且在我們一路推進時，我覺得我們有點像是綁著一隻手在打。我們的財務報表沒有保持最新，我們必須花很多時間在那上面。

And as we are now in a completely different position, I would expect that our percentages of those deals will go up meaningfully. I would hope. That is the goal.

而現在我們已處於完全不同的位置，我預期我們在那些交易中的占比會顯著提高。我希望如此。那就是目標。

Got it. And then the last one for me is you had mentioned that because the company was a delinquent filer, there was certain business that was pulled from you guys. How are you thinking about -- or how are you seeing the cadence of that recovery of former clients returning?

了解。那我最後一個問題是，你提到因為公司是逾期申報者（delinquent filer），有些業務被從你們那裡抽走。你們如何看待——或你們如何觀察——先前客戶回流的恢復節奏？

Yes, it's been strong. So we measure it weekly. We have seen a lot of onboarding of accounts again. It was a big deal for, I think, some of the bigger institutions that just check a box, and that box was we're delinquent, so let's cut them off for now. And so it's been dramatic over the course of the last quarter.

是的，表現很強勁。我們每週都在衡量。我們看到很多帳戶再次完成導入（onboarding）。我認為對一些較大的機構而言，這是一件大事；他們只是勾選一個核對方塊，而那個方塊就是「我們逾期申報」，所以「先暫時切斷合作」。因此在過去一個季度的過程中，變化非常明顯。

Okay. Good to hear. Congratulations on the quarter.

好的，很高興聽到。恭喜本季表現。

This concludes the Q&A session. Handing it back to Bryant Riley for any final remarks.

問答環節到此結束。接下來交回給 Bryant Riley 做最後結語。

Thank you, operator. It's been a -- it really feels good to report on the 7th and have a normal cadence. And now we get to go after, as I mentioned, some of these operating costs that were onetime in nature. None of this would have happened if we didn't have an amazing group that worked 24/7 to get to this not only our revenues in line, but also our -- get the financials done.

謝謝你，接線員。能在 7 號進行報告並恢復正常節奏，感覺真的很好。現在我們可以著手處理我提到的一些一次性（onetime）營運成本。如果沒有一個了不起的團隊 24/7 地努力達成這一點，這些都不可能發生——不僅讓我們的營收回到正軌，也把財務報表完成。

So super thankful, and thanks, everyone, for calling in, and we look forward to talking to you. Our conference is coming up. So hopefully, we'll see some of you at our conference on the 20th and appreciate the interest. We'll see you next quarter. Thank you.

所以非常感謝，也謝謝各位來電參與，我們期待與各位再交流。我們的會議即將到來，所以希望能在 20 號的會議上見到各位中的一些人，也感謝大家的關注。我們下個季度見。謝謝。

Before we conclude, we'd like to inform listeners that today's call may include forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied.

在我們結束之前，我們想提醒聽眾，今天的電話會議可能包含前瞻性陳述。這些陳述不保證未來表現，並涉及風險與不確定性，可能導致實際結果與所表達或暗示者有重大差異。

For a discussion of these risks, please refer to our most recent SEC filings, including our annual report on Form 10-K and subsequent 10-Qs. We do not undertake any obligation to update these forward-looking statements. This concludes today's Evercall.

關於這些風險的討論，請參閱我們最近向 SEC 提交的文件，包括我們的 Form 10-K 年報以及後續的 10-Q。我們不承擔更新這些前瞻性陳述的任何義務。今天的 Evercall 到此結束。

A replay will be made available shortly after today's call. Thank you, and have a great day.

重播將在今天電話會議結束後不久提供。謝謝，祝各位有美好的一天。