Reuters' fund management research subsidiary Lipper is to acquire specialist hedge fund data and research companies HedgeWorld and Tass Research. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Lipper is acquiring the Tass Research database, which covers some 6600 hedge funds, from New York-based Tremont Capital Management.
Under the terms of the agreement, Tremont will continue to manage the data collection and maintenance of the database and will retain the right to use the database, as it presently does, to support its core asset management and investment product business as well as its index-related services
The HedgeWorld business, which provides news, research and analysis to 55,000 hedge fund professionals and investors, will be acquired from a group of companies owned by a consortium of private investors including Tremont.
Following the acquisition, HedgeWorld will operate as a division within Lipper and its staff and management team will remain at its operations in White Plains, New York and Chicago. Johann Wong, founder and CEO of HedgeWorld, will head up Lippers hedge fund and advisory services unit.
Lipper says the acquisitions will help it capitalise on the growth and institutionalisation of hedge funds and significantly broadens the range of collective investments it tracks.
Julie Holland, global head of research and asset management, Reuters, says: "This agreement helps us realise our vision to become the leading supplier of collective investment intelligence to the investment industry and is key to Reuters strategy in the research and asset management space."
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close this week.