Reuters UK- U.S. money manager BlackRock said on Tuesday it is planning to launch a London-listed closed-end fund of hedge funds that will offer exposure to its $11 billion (5.5 billion pound) Appreciation Strategy. <\/p>\n
BlackRock Absolute Return Strategies is expected to be launched during the first half of the year, subject to market conditions, the firm said in a note.<\/p>\n
The fund is likely to be a multi-strategy fund similar to BlackRock’s Qars 3 fund of hedge funds, an industry commentator familiar with the matter said.<\/p>\n
The new fund will invest in the Appreciation Strategy, which has a 12-year-plus track record. This is the flagship strategy of BlackRock Alternative Advisors, which was formed last year after BlackRock bought the fund of funds business of Quellos Group.<\/p>\n
BlackRock declined to say how much the new fund was planning to raise in assets.<\/p>\n