Galleon has reportedly sold 90% of investments
NEW YORK - Galleon Group, the hedge fund firm that’s liquidating after billionaire founder Raj Rajaratnam was charged with insider trading, sold more than 90 percent of its investments, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The holdings were sold over three days, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The firm, with client assets of $3.7 billion, owned stakes in large technology companies such as Ebay Inc., Google Inc., and Apple Inc., and smaller stocks such as OSI Pharmaceuticals Inc., according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Galleon, which plans to return money to investors by Jan. 1, has been approached by unidentified parties interested in buying the firm or parts of it. Rajaratnam, 52, was one of six people arrested Oct. 16 for alleged insider trading and is free on $100 million bail. He started Galleon in 1997.
Renee Soto, a spokeswoman for the New York firm, declined to comment on the liquidation, which was reported earlier yesterday by Dow Jones Newswires. Rajaratnam said last week he is innocent.
Investors in Galleon’s $350 million technology fund, which is run by Rajaratnam, can withdraw their money on a monthly basis.
Clients of the firm’s other hedge funds, including the $1.2 billion Diversified, can take their money out every quarter.
