TGS Management

In 1989, TGS was founded by Frederick Taylor, David Gelbaum and Andrew Shechtel.[1][2][3] The name of the firm comes from the starting letters of its three founders' surnames.[3] The three of them previously worked at Princeton-Newport Partners (PNP), the world's first quantitative hedge fund that was founded in 1969 by Edward O. Thorp.[1][3][4] In December 1988, PNP closed due to financial burdens imposed by a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act investigation.[1][3][4] The three founders of TGS were not accused of any wrongdoing and after they started TGS, they kept many former PNP employees and investors.[1]

When TGS started trading, it pursued a form of statistical arbitrage and within a few years, it had made enough to return money to most of its outside investors.[1][2] As it no longer needed to solicit outsiders for capital, the firm had more flexibility on pursuing its own investment strategies without needing to disclose them.[1][2] In late 1990s, TGS briefly appeared in the news where it mounted an arbitrage campaign against several closed-end funds under the Scottish Investment Trust.[1][5] At least one fund was forced to dissolve leading to the British media dubbing the firm a “secretive U.S. vulture fund”.[1][5] At the time TGS was operating under the name Sierra Trading.[5][6]

The Real Deal reported that TGS has been acquiring land and office space in Irvine.[7] As of February 2023, TGS owns more than 60 acres in Irvine.[7]

TGS is known to be highly selective and hires individuals from quantitative backgrounds which include software engineers and PhDs.[1][2] The Wall Street Journal reported that TGS outbid Renaissance Technologies and Citadel LLC to hire a International Mathematical Olympiad gold medalist for $700,000 a year.[8]

Bloomberg News reported that the founders of TGS have been donating large sums of money away to charity anonymously.[1][3] This was done by making use of many different subsidiaries under TGS to hide the source of funds.[1] Donations include finding a cure for Huntington's disease.[1][3]

In the early 2000s, TGS lobbied Congress on tax policy for three consecutive years.[1] In 2001, it submitted a wish list of tax law changes to the United States House Committee on Ways and Means.[1] It also wanted more generous tax treatment for donors who target rare diseases or contribute securities such as bonds to a private foundation.[1]

• Official website