Key Takeaways
- • Republic, a New York-headquartered investment firm, announced the acquisition of GoldenChain, a wholly owned subsidiary of GoldenTree Asset Management that manages GoldenTree's digital assets funds, according to a Business Wire release dated April 2, 2024.
- • Joe Naggar, a GoldenTree Partner focused on digital assets, will become Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of the newly created Republic Digital, concentrating fully on the digital asset class.
- • Naggar brings more than 25 years of investing experience and previously built GoldenTree's structured products franchise, which grew to over $7bn in investments as of January 2024.
- • GoldenTree founder Steve Tananbaum said GoldenTree intends to remain an investor in GoldenChain following the transition.
Summary
Republic announced the acquisition of GoldenChain, the digital asset arm of GoldenTree Asset Management, through a Business Wire release. Republic described itself as a leading investment firm and said the transaction creates Republic Digital, a new unit that will carry forward GoldenChain's digital asset business. The release did not disclose the purchase price or other deal terms.
Joe Naggar, a longtime GoldenTree Partner with a focus on digital assets, will leave GoldenTree to serve as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Republic Digital. According to the release, Naggar most recently served as Head of Digital Assets of GoldenChain. He has invested in digital assets personally since 2013 and professionally since 2022. He joined GoldenTree in 2007, where he built proprietary systems to analyze opportunities in collateralized loan obligations and, more recently, digital assets. In 2007 he also established a dedicated structured products team, and as of January 2024 structured product investments at GoldenTree had grown to over $7bn. He previously served on GoldenTree's Executive Committee and Macro Committee and, before joining GoldenTree, was a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley in its Global Fixed Income Division.
Andrew Durgee, President of Republic, said the acquisition marks a significant milestone in expanding the firm's presence and expertise in digital assets, and that the combined strengths of Republic and GoldenChain would create compelling opportunities for investors. Steve Tananbaum, Founder, Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer of GoldenTree, thanked Naggar for his contributions and said GoldenTree intends to remain an investor in GoldenChain and believes the transition positions the digital assets business for growth.
Republic described itself as a global investment firm offering both retail and institutional investors access to traditional and digital assets through regulated investment advisers, broker-dealers, funding portals and advisory services in the US, UK, EU, Korea, Singapore and, soon, the GCC. The firm said its ecosystem includes over 3 million investors from more than 100 countries and that more than 2,000 companies have raised over $3B through it. Republic is backed by Valor Equity Partners, Galaxy Interactive, Morgan Stanley, Hashed and AngelList, among others.
GoldenTree, founded in 2000 by Tananbaum, is an employee-owned credit-focused manager with over $53 billion in assets for institutional clients, including public and corporate pensions, endowments, foundations, insurers and sovereign wealth funds.
Joe Naggar, a longtime GoldenTree Partner with a focus on digital assets, will leave GoldenTree to serve as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Republic Digital. According to the release, Naggar most recently served as Head of Digital Assets of GoldenChain. He has invested in digital assets personally since 2013 and professionally since 2022. He joined GoldenTree in 2007, where he built proprietary systems to analyze opportunities in collateralized loan obligations and, more recently, digital assets. In 2007 he also established a dedicated structured products team, and as of January 2024 structured product investments at GoldenTree had grown to over $7bn. He previously served on GoldenTree's Executive Committee and Macro Committee and, before joining GoldenTree, was a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley in its Global Fixed Income Division.
Andrew Durgee, President of Republic, said the acquisition marks a significant milestone in expanding the firm's presence and expertise in digital assets, and that the combined strengths of Republic and GoldenChain would create compelling opportunities for investors. Steve Tananbaum, Founder, Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer of GoldenTree, thanked Naggar for his contributions and said GoldenTree intends to remain an investor in GoldenChain and believes the transition positions the digital assets business for growth.
Republic described itself as a global investment firm offering both retail and institutional investors access to traditional and digital assets through regulated investment advisers, broker-dealers, funding portals and advisory services in the US, UK, EU, Korea, Singapore and, soon, the GCC. The firm said its ecosystem includes over 3 million investors from more than 100 countries and that more than 2,000 companies have raised over $3B through it. Republic is backed by Valor Equity Partners, Galaxy Interactive, Morgan Stanley, Hashed and AngelList, among others.
GoldenTree, founded in 2000 by Tananbaum, is an employee-owned credit-focused manager with over $53 billion in assets for institutional clients, including public and corporate pensions, endowments, foundations, insurers and sovereign wealth funds.
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