GLG Partners, one of Europe’s largest hedge fund firms, has lined up a U.S. stock market listing to help it expand and hire top managers, using a reverse acquisition that values it at $3.4 billion, Reuters reports.
Public flotations of alternative investment vehicles, including hedge funds and private equity firms, have become one of the hottest areas of the markets in New York and London, with the likes of Fortress Investment Group and Blackstone Group becoming available to individual investors.
London-based GLG, which has more than $20 billion of assets under management, said its owners would receive $1 billion cash and 230 million shares of Freedom Holdings, or a 72 percent stake worth about $2.4 billion. Freedom is a listed shell company that will combine with GLG in the reverse takeover.
The government of Dubai and German private bank Sal. Oppenheim also have each bought a 3 percent stake in GLG from one of the firm’s co-founders, Jonathan Green.