Administration February 4, 2004

BlackRock Picks Up Fund of Funds Manager

April 14, 2003 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - BlackRock has agreed to buy a fund of hedge funds management company.

Reported by

According to an announcement, BlackRock will pick up a majority stake in HPB Management, LLC, a $150-million company founded by Howard Berkowitz. When the deal closes – now scheduled for April 30 – Berkowitz will become a BlackRock managing director and chief executive of its fund of hedge fund business. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Following closing, seven employees will work on fund of hedge fund business under Berkowitz. The team will be responsible for manager research, selection and monitoring. BlackRock’s fund of funds business will be based in its New York City headquarters.

Berkowitz comes to BlackRock with more than 30 years of experience managing hedge funds and fund of funds products, according to the announcement.