Key Takeaways
- • Fortress Investment Group acquired a global multi-manager hedge fund platform from PineBridge Investments, which had operated it through a strategic partnership with BMO Global Asset Management, and renamed it Fortress Multi-Manager Group (Fortress MMG).
- • Jeff Runnfeldt, most recently Global Head of Equities at Balyasny Asset Management and previously Head of Global Equities at Citadel, joins Fortress MMG as Chief Investment Officer in October 2024.
- • Todd Rapp, who led the platform since its 2021 founding, has been named CEO of Fortress MMG.
- • The platform is positioned as a liquid, diversified, market-neutral multi-manager offering for Fortress's limited partners, according to co-CEOs Drew McKnight and Josh Pack.
- • Fortress managed $44.7 billion in AUM as of June 30, 2023, per the company's disclosure.
Summary
Fortress Investment Group LLC announced the acquisition of a global multi-manager hedge fund offering from PineBridge Investments and the hiring of Jeff Runnfeldt as Chief Investment Officer of a new global multi-manager investment platform, the Fortress Multi-Manager Group (Fortress MMG), according to a Business Wire release. The platform was founded in 2021 and was previously owned by PineBridge Investments through a strategic partnership with BMO Global Asset Management (BMO GAM). Upon closing, the platform was renamed Fortress Multi-Manager Group.
Runnfeldt will join the Fortress MMG leadership team in October 2024. He has more than two decades of experience in the multi-manager hedge fund industry, most recently serving as Global Head of Equities at Balyasny Asset Management, and previously as Head of Global Equities at Citadel. He began his career as a Bank Examiner at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and holds a B.S. in finance from California State University, Bakersfield and an M.S. in finance from San Francisco State University. Todd Rapp, who has led the platform since its inception, has been named CEO of Fortress MMG.
Fortress co-CEOs Drew McKnight and Josh Pack said the firm looks forward to providing investors with a liquid, diversified, and market-neutral approach to multi-manager investing. They described the firm as a solution provider for its limited partners, which regularly evaluates opportunities to enhance its offerings. BMO Global Asset Management CEO Bill Bamber said BMO is supportive of the acquisition and looks forward to further building on the partnership with Fortress.
The transaction comes as Fortress proceeds with its previously announced ownership change. In May 2023, Fortress and Mubadala Investment Company, through Mubadala Capital, agreed to acquire the equity of Fortress held by SoftBank Group Corp. Following that transaction's close, Fortress management will appoint a majority of the board and retain full autonomy over business and investment operations. Fortress, founded in 1998, manages $44.7 billion in assets as of June 30, 2023 across credit and real estate, private equity and permanent capital strategies for more than 1,900 institutional and private clients.
Runnfeldt will join the Fortress MMG leadership team in October 2024. He has more than two decades of experience in the multi-manager hedge fund industry, most recently serving as Global Head of Equities at Balyasny Asset Management, and previously as Head of Global Equities at Citadel. He began his career as a Bank Examiner at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and holds a B.S. in finance from California State University, Bakersfield and an M.S. in finance from San Francisco State University. Todd Rapp, who has led the platform since its inception, has been named CEO of Fortress MMG.
Fortress co-CEOs Drew McKnight and Josh Pack said the firm looks forward to providing investors with a liquid, diversified, and market-neutral approach to multi-manager investing. They described the firm as a solution provider for its limited partners, which regularly evaluates opportunities to enhance its offerings. BMO Global Asset Management CEO Bill Bamber said BMO is supportive of the acquisition and looks forward to further building on the partnership with Fortress.
The transaction comes as Fortress proceeds with its previously announced ownership change. In May 2023, Fortress and Mubadala Investment Company, through Mubadala Capital, agreed to acquire the equity of Fortress held by SoftBank Group Corp. Following that transaction's close, Fortress management will appoint a majority of the board and retain full autonomy over business and investment operations. Fortress, founded in 1998, manages $44.7 billion in assets as of June 30, 2023 across credit and real estate, private equity and permanent capital strategies for more than 1,900 institutional and private clients.
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