Lipper to Buy HedgeWorld, Tass Research

Lipper announced Tuesday that it has entered into an agreement to purchase HedgeWorld and the TASS Research database business, two highly regarded hedge fund research tools.

Lipper, the fund analysis and research arm of Reuters, will buy TASS Research, an institutional-quality hedge fund database covering roughly 6,600 hedge funds, from Tremont Capital Management. Under the terms of the agreement, Tremont will retain the right to use the TASS database.

HedgeWorld, which provides news, research and analysis to some 55,000 hedge fund professionals worldwide, will be acquired from a group of companies owned by a number of private investors including Tremont.

"We are delighted by the prospect of acquiring both the top hedge fund database and the leading hedge fund community and news provider. Given the substantial growth prospects in the hedge fund market, we are pleased that this acquisition will allow Reuters and Lipper to expand the services which track and research these funds for funds-of-funds managers, service providers, financial advisors and accredited investors," said Michael Peace, chief executive officer of Lipper.

Lipper's goal in making these acquisitions is to tap on the significant growth being experienced in the hedge fund industry. "Hedge fund assets have grown dramatically, rising from a $30 billion industry in 1990 to an estimated $975 billion today. This deal will allow HedgeWorld to take advantage of Reuters and Lipper's global resources to expand our leadership position and broaden our reach into the rapidly growing hedge fund industry," said Johann Wong, founder and chief executive officer of HedgeWorld.