Blackstone and Goldman alumni backed by TPG
US private equity firm TPG Capital yesterday joined the star-studded line-up backing HS Group, the Asian hedge fund sponsor co-founded by ex-Blackstone and Goldman Sachs execs.
Texas-based TPG will buy a stake in the company and will appoint TPG Asia co-head Tim Dattels to the advisory board as part of the deal.
TPG will also refer customers to the Hong Kong-based group as part of a strategic tie-up. No price was disclosed for the deal.
HS Group, which stands for Headland Strategic, was launched last year by former Blackstone executive Michael Garrow and Johannes Kaps, a former Goldman managing director.
“Asia’s hedge fund industry will see secular [long-term] growth over the coming years. HS Group’s relationships with the region’s strongest investment talent combined with institutional best practices complement TPG’s vision for the industry,” Dattels said.
HS was founded with backing from investors including the firm’s co-founders and Swiss hedge fund Gottex Fund Management.
HS’s chairman V-Nee Yeh, who helped co-found one of Hong Kong’s biggest money managers Value Partners Group, also put money in.
HS Group takes money and gives it start-up hedge funds in the region in the hope that they become successful and make HS more money.
The group seeded start-up Pleiad Investment Advisors, led by two former Soros Fund Management Asian stock picking experts, earlier this year with $150m.
The deal marks TPG’s first foray into the hedge fund world but it already has a strong presence in Asia.