Denver Investments, a USD7bn asset management firm, and GRT Capital Partners, a multi-strategy alternative investment firm, have formed Denver Alternatives.

As the new alternative asset division of Denver Investments, Denver Alternatives will serve pension funds, endowments, family offices and other institutional investors.

"The two ingredients for success in the alternatives space are talent and discipline," says Todger Anderson (pictured), chairman of Denver Investments. "GRT's strategies are managed by professionals with decades of experience at leading institutions and strong historical track records - all backed by excellent research. This relationship allows the firm's current investment teams to stay 100 per cent focused on existing clients."

John DeTore, chief investment officer of Denver Alternatives, adds: "Alternatives continue to grow in importance to institutional investors. Denver Alternatives has a major product line of ten existing strategies with strong returns driven with diverse investment processes. This creates an opportunity to offer a unique multi-strategy/multi-manager product designed to provide return, risk control and custody advantages over competing products and product platforms."

Available strategies include long/short fundamental investing, disciplined market neutral investing in Europe, Asia and the Americas, specialised products for healthcare, technology and natural resources, public/private style microcap investing, closed-end fund arbitrage and asset allocation.

"Denver Investments embodies a culture and philosophy we admire - with roots in research-based active management since 1958 and an excellent reputation in serving the needs of institutions," says Tim Krochuk, managing director at GRT Capital and chief operating officer of Denver Alternatives. "These attributes, combined with GRT's extensive management expertise in alternative investments and operational capabilities, allow Denver Alternatives to address the needs of institutional investors head-on."