Jeffrey Glynn Tarrant (April 4, 1956 – August 5, 2019) was an American investor. He was the founder and chairman of MOV37 and Protégé Partners, firms specializing in identifying,

seeding The term seeding and related terms such as seeded are used in several different contexts: *Sowing, planting seeds in a place or on an object *Cloud seeding, manipulating cloud formations *Seeding (computing), a concept in computing and peer-to-pee ...

and early stage investing in investment funds. He was also a founding partner of film production company Candescent Films. He died from brain cancer in 2019.

Education

Tarrant received a BA in economics from the

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The institut ...

in 1978, and an MBA from

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

in 1985.Christine Williamson
"Smaller is better,"
''Pensions & Investments'', February 4, 2013.

Career

Early career

After graduating from Harvard Business School, Tarrant joined Berkeley Asset Management in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...

, as vice president, co-managing the Sequoia Fund, one of the first fund of hedge funds in the United States.Randolph B. Cohen and Brian DeLacey
"Protégé Partners: The Capacity Challenge,"
Harvard Business School Case 205-100, Brighton, MA:

Harvard Business Publishing Harvard Business Publishing was founded in 1994 as a not-for-profit, wholly owned subsidiary of Harvard University (distinct from Harvard University Press), with a focus on improving business management practices. The company consists of three ...

, April 2005 (rev. January 2006), p. 10. He went on to manage assets for private family fortunes, including

Sidney Kimmel Sidney J. Kimmel (born January 16, 1928) is an American businessman, philanthropist, and film producer. He is ranked number 2141 in the ''Forbes'' list of the richest people alive in 2021.Jones Apparel Group Nine West Holdings (formerly The Jones Group and Jones Apparel Group) is an American designer, marketer and wholesaler of branded clothing, shoes and accessories. In 2019, the company restructured under and is renamed Premier Brands Group Holdin ...

).James Williams
"Protégé Partners: The art of seeding talent,"
Hedgeweek, December 19, 2016. For the

Thurn und Taxis The Princely House of Thurn and Taxis (german: link=no, Fürstenhaus Thurn und Taxis ) is a family of German nobility that is part of the ''Briefadel''. It was a key player in the postal services in Europe during the 16th century, until the end ...

family of Germany, he managed their marketable securities hedge fund portfolio and investments in the United States, United Kingdom and Europe. In 1996, Tarrant founded Altvest, the first Web-based directory of hedge funds and managers.Cathleen M. Rittereiser and Lawrence E. Kochard,
Top Hedge Fund Investors: Stories, Strategies, and Advice
', Hoboken:

John Wiley & Sons John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American multinational publishing company founded in 1807 that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company produces books, journals, and encyclopedias, in p ...

, 2010, p. 179.Cade Metz
"AI and Bitcoin Are Driving the Next Big Hedge Fund Wave,"
''

Wired ''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San Fra ...

'', February 13, 2017. InvestorForce purchased it in 2000, and it was made a division of investment research firm Morningstar in 2006."Morningstar Boosts Hedge Fund Resources With Altvest Acquisition,"
FIN Alternatives, July 21, 2006.

Protégé Partners

Tarrant served from 1998 to 2002 on the board of directors of The Investment Fund for Foundations (TIFF), an investment advisory firm for charitable foundations, and advised TIFF on building its first hedge fund of funds. In 2001, Tarrant was introduced to Ted Seides by TIFF founder David Salem, which led to the formation of Protégé Partners. Based in Manhattan, Protégé specializes in seeding and early stage investing in hedge funds.Claire Makin
"Small managers and mainstream strategies are keys to Protégé's success,"
''InvestHedge'', March 2010. Tarrant initially served as chief investment officer and chief executive officer, with Seides as president.Rebecca Spalding and Saijel Kishan
"Protégé's Ted Seides Joining Credit Suisse to Build Fund,"
''

Bloomberg Businessweek ''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'', is an American weekly business magazine published fifty times a year. Since 2009, the magazine is owned by New York City-based Bloomberg L.P. The magazine debuted in New York City ...

'', July 17, 2015. Seides took over as co-CIO in 2011 until leaving the firm in 2015, at which point Tarrant resumed his role as sole CIO. The

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

and the New Jersey pension system were early investors with Protégé. As of 2016, Protégé manages $1.6 billion.Stephen Taub
"Good Guys: Protégé's Jeff Tarrant Partners with Witness to Document Injustice,"
''Institutional Investor's Alpha'', September 19, 2016. In 2017, he moved into the role of chairman. Tarrant is featured in

Gregory Zuckerman Gregory S. Zuckerman (born September 7, 1966) is a special writer at ''The Wall Street Journal'' and a non-fiction author. Education and family Gregory Zuckerman grew up in Rhode Island and was graduated from Brandeis University, magna cum laude ...

's 2009 nonfiction book ''

The Greatest Trade Ever ''The Greatest Trade Ever: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of How John Paulson Defied Wall Street and Made Financial History'' is a debut non-fiction book by American journalist Gregory Zuckerman. The book was released on November 3, 2009 by Crown Bus ...

'', about

John Paulson John Alfred Paulson (born December 14, 1955) is an American billionaire hedge fund manager. He leads Paulson & Co., a New York-based investment management firm he founded in 1994. He has been called "one of the most prominent names in high fina ...

's use of credit default swaps to bet against the US subprime mortgage bubble. Tarrant and Paulson were discussing issues with the housing market as far back as 2004. Tarrant was the lead investor in Paulson's new fund, putting in $60 million on behalf of Protégé clients in 2006 (out of a total of $147 million Paulson would raise).

Buffett bet

In early 2008,

Warren Buffett Warren Edward Buffett ( ; born August 30, 1930) is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is currently the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. He is one of the most successful investors in the world and has a net w ...

bet Protégé Partners that over a 10-year period, the

S&P 500 Index The Standard and Poor's 500, or simply the S&P 500, is a stock market index tracking the stock performance of 500 large companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States. It is one of the most commonly followed equity indices. As of D ...

would outperform a portfolio of hedge funds. For the bet, done through the

Long Now Foundation The Long Now Foundation, established in 1996, is an American non-profit organization based in San Francisco that seeks to start and promote a long-term cultural institution. It aims to provide a counterpoint to what it views as today's "faster ...

, Protégé built an index of five funds that invest in hedge funds, placing its bet on the average returns of those funds after all fees. Buffett bet on a low-cost S&P 500 index fund sold by

Vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives fr ...

. Each side put up $320,000, with the money used to buy a US Treasury bond that would be worth $1 million at the conclusion of the bet, on December 31, 2017. The $1 million will be donated to the winner’s choice of charity.Carol J. Loomis
"Buffett's Big Bet,"
''

Fortune Fortune may refer to: General * Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck * Luck * Wealth * Fortune, a prediction made in fortune-telling * Fortune, in a fortune cookie Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Fortune'' (1931 film) ...

'', November 23, 2009. In 2012, after the bonds appreciated faster than expected and interest rates fell, the two sides agreed to buy 11,200 Berkshire Hathaway B shares, which at the end of 2017 were worth $2.22 million. Buffett won the bet, and that amount was donated to Girls Inc. of Omaha.

Digital currency

Tarrant was one of the backers of the

MIT Media Lab The MIT Media Lab is a research laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, growing out of MIT's Architecture Machine Group in the School of Architecture. Its research does not restrict to fixed academic disciplines, but draws from ...

's Bitcoin Developer Fund. It provides financial support for the three

bitcoin Bitcoin ( abbreviation: BTC; sign: ₿) is a decentralized digital currency that can be transferred on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network. Bitcoin transactions are verified by network nodes through cryptography and recorded in a public distr ...

developers working for the Media Lab's Digital Currency Initiative, which was launched in 2015 to explore issues involved in

blockchain A blockchain is a type of distributed ledger technology (DLT) that consists of growing lists of records, called ''blocks'', that are securely linked together using cryptography. Each block contains a cryptographic hash of the previous block, a ...

technology and

cryptocurrency A cryptocurrency, crypto-currency, or crypto is a digital currency designed to work as a medium of exchange through a computer network that is not reliant on any central authority, such as a government or bank, to uphold or maintain it. It i ...

. In 2016, Tarrant invested in Polychain Capital, then the world's largest

hedge fund, cashing out at the end of 2017. He was an investor in early iterations of quantitative hedge fund investing, including

Renaissance Technologies Renaissance Technologies LLC, also known as RenTech or RenTec, is an American hedge fund based in East Setauket, New York, on Long Island, which specializes in systematic trading using quantitative models derived from mathematical and statisti ...

.Nishant Kumar and Taylor Hall
"Why Machines Still Can't Learn So Good,"
''Bloomberg Businessweek'', November 9, 2016.

MOV37

Around 2016, Tarrant began focusing on machine learning and data science, exploring hedge funds built on concepts of

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech re ...

crowdsourcing Crowdsourcing involves a large group of dispersed participants contributing or producing goods or services—including ideas, votes, micro-tasks, and finances—for payment or as volunteers. Contemporary crowdsourcing often involves digita ...

, and

digital currencies Digital currency (digital money, electronic money or electronic currency) is any currency, money, or money-like asset that is primarily managed, stored or exchanged on digital computer systems, especially over the internet. Types of digital cu ...

. In 2017, he began building a directory for this new wave of modern technology-driven funds, which he termed Autonomous Learning Investment Strategies (ALIS). He founded MOV37 in 2017, an autonomous learning and data analysis firm which invests in emerging hedge funds. ALIS managers create a fully autonomous system that uses unstructured non-financial data, data science, record-low processing and storage costs, and machine learning that is constantly learning and improving based on incremental data.

Documentary films

Tarrant was a founding partner in the production company Candescent Films, which was started in 2010 to produce and finance documentary films exploring social issues.Ade Adeniji
"Let's Talk About This Wealthy Couple's 'Filmanthropic' Mission,"
Inside Philanthropy, December 3, 2015.Graham Winfrey
"The Orchard and CNN Acquire Documentary 'Trophy' – Sundance 2017,"

Indiewire IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Hollyw ...

, January 20, 2017. With Candescent, Tarrant was an executive producer on films including ''Sons of the Clouds'', narrated by

Javier Bardem Javier Ángel Encinas Bardem (; born 1 March 1969) is a Spanish actor. Known for his roles in Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters and foreign films, he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as the psychopath, ...

, which premiered at the

2012 Berlin International Film Festival The 62nd annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 9 to 19 February 2012. British film director Mike Leigh was the President of the Jury. The first five films to be screened in the competition were announced on 19 December 2011. Am ...

and won the 2013 Goya Award for Best Documentary Film; ''

The Queen of Versailles ''The Queen of Versailles'' is a 2012 American documentary film by Lauren Greenfield. The film depicts Jackie Siegel and David Siegel, owners of Westgate Resorts, and their family as they build their private residence – Versailles, one of ...

'', which won the

2012 Sundance Film Festival The 2012 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 19 until January 29, 2012 in Park City, Utah. 64 short films were selected for the festival from 7,675 submissions, including 27 international shorts from 3,592 submissions. Non-competition ...

U.S. Directing Award for Documentary; ''Who Is Dayani Cristal?'' starring

Gael García Bernal Gael García Bernal (; born 30 November 1978) is a Mexican actor and producer. He is best known for his performances in the films '' Bad Education'', '' The Motorcycle Diaries'', ''Amores perros'', ''Y tu mamá también'', ''Babel'', '' Coco'', ...

, which premiered at the

2013 Sundance Film Festival The 2013 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 17, 2013, until January 27, 2013, in Park City, Utah, United States, with screenings in Salt Lake City, Utah, Ogden, Utah, and Sundance, Utah. The festival had 1,830 volunteers. Films A r ...

; and ''Trophy'', which premiered at the

2017 Sundance Film Festival The 2017 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 19 to January 29, 2017. The first lineup of competition films was announced November 30, 2016. Awards The following awards were presented: * Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic – ''I Don't Feel at ...

and was acquired by

CNN Films CNN Films is a motion picture division of CNN under Warner Bros. Pictures. originally launched in 2012. Its first film, ''Girl Rising'' premiered in spring 2013 in the United States. History On October 8, 2012, CNN announced the creation of CNN F ...

and

The Orchard The Orchard may refer to: * The Orchard (company), American music and entertainment company * The Orchard (band), Canadian country music duo * ''The Orchard'' (Lizz Wright album), 2008 * ''The Orchard'' (Ra Ra Riot album), 2010 * The Orchard (t ...

. Prior to his work with Candescent, Tarrant executive produced the 2007 documentary '' The Third Wave'', based on a book written by Alison Thompson about her work aiding

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

n survivors of the

2004 Asian tsunami An earthquake and a tsunami, known as the Boxing Day Tsunami and, by the scientific community, the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, occurred at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+7) on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Suma ...

. Tarrant and

Bill Ackman William Albert Ackman (born May 11, 1966) is an American billionaire investor and hedge fund manager. He is the founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, a hedge fund management company. His investment approach makes him an activis ...

executive produced the 2010 documentary ''

Smash His Camera ''Smash His Camera'' is a 2010 documentary film directed by filmmaker Leon Gast about the life and career of paparazzi photographer Ron Galella. The film won the "Directing Award Documentary" at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and was released on 3 ...

'', about the life and career of paparazzi photographer

Ron Galella Ronald Edward Galella (January 10, 1931 – April 30, 2022) was an American photographer, known as a pioneer paparazzo. Dubbed "Paparazzo Extraordinaire" by ''Newsweek'' and "the Godfather of the U.S. paparazzi culture" by ''Time'' magazine and ...

. Directed by

Leon Gast Leon Jacques Gast (March 30, 1936 – March 8, 2021) was an American documentary film director, producer, cinematographer, and editor. His documentary, ''When We Were Kings'' depicts the iconic heavyweight boxing match: The Rumble in the Jungle b ...

, it won the US Directing Award: Documentary at the

2010 Sundance Film Festival The 26th annual Sundance Film Festival was held from January 21, 2010 until January 31, 2010 in Park City, Utah. Award winners *Grand Jury Prize: Documentary - '' Restrepo'' *Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic - ''Winter's Bone'' *World Cinema Jury Prize: ...

and was later picked up by

Magnolia Pictures Magnolia Pictures is an American film distributor. It is a subsidiary of Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner's 2929 Entertainment. Magnolia was formed in 2001 by Bill Banowsky and Eamonn Bowles, and specializes in both foreign and independent films. Mag ...

and

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

Philanthropy

In 2002, Tarrant helped launch the London-based charity

Absolute Return for Kids Absolute Return for Kids (ARK), is an international children's educational charity based in London, UK. Ark is a registered charity under English law. In its reporting year 2017–18, excluding its few subsidiaries, it saw gross income of £ ...

. He was the vice chairman of its United States affiliate, Friends of ARK. In 2011, Tarrant joined the board of

WITNESS In law, a witness is someone who has knowledge about a matter, whether they have sensed it or are testifying on another witnesses' behalf. In law a witness is someone who, either voluntarily or under compulsion, provides testimonial evidence, e ...

, a nonprofit focused on human rights issues, founded in 1992 by musician

Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...

and the

Lawyers Committee for Human Rights Human Rights First (formerly known as the Lawyers Committee for International Human Rights) is a nonpartisan, 501(c)(3), international human rights organization based in New York City and Washington, D.C. In 2004, Human Rights First started its ...

. In the fall of 2016, Tarrant and Gabriel launched WITNESS Innovation Initiatives, whose goal is to collaborate with technology companies, schools, developers and activists to create human rights documenting skills. Tarrant was on the board of

The Angiogenesis Foundation The Angiogenesis Foundation, is a United States 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 1994 for the study of angiogenesis. The founders were former students of Dr. Judah Folkman, a pioneer of angiogenesis research. The foundation focus ...

Bibliography

* "Risikoreduzierung – Multi-Manager Portfolio – Nicht Traditioneller Investments" in ''Vermögensanlage mit ausgewogenem Risiko'', Roger C. Gibson, editor, Germany: Verlag Moderne Industry, 1990. * "Hedge Fund Investing: A Private Family Perspective" in ''Evaluating and Implementing Hedge Fund Strategies'', Second Edition, Ronald A. Lake, editor, London: Euromoney Books, 1999. * "The Life Cycle of Hedge Fund Managers" in ''Evaluating and Implementing Hedge Fund Strategies'', Third Edition, Ronald A. Lake, editor, London: Euromoney Books, chapter 21, pp. 269–77, 2003.

Filmography

References

External links

Profile
at Protégé Partners
Jeffrey Tarrant
at

Bloomberg.com Bloomberg News (originally Bloomberg Business News) is an international news agency headquartered in New York City and a division of Bloomberg L.P. Content produced by Bloomberg News is disseminated through Bloomberg Terminals, Bloomberg Televi ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tarrant, Jeffrey 1956 births 2019 deaths People from Stockton, California University of California, Davis alumni Harvard Business School alumni Businesspeople from New York City American hedge fund managers American investors American chief executives of financial services companies Chief investment officers American documentary film producers People associated with Bitcoin Deaths from brain cancer in the United States Deaths from cancer in New York (state) 20th-century American businesspeople