TCW Hires Top Manager From Transamerica

TCW Group, the parent of giant Los Angeles money manager Trust Co. of the West, said Wednesday that it had hired top fund manager Glen E. Bickerstaff to manage money for institutional and retail clients.

Bickerstaff, 41, previously managed more than $3 billion in assets at Transamerica Corp., including Transamerica Premier Equity, one of the top-performing large-company stock funds for 1997. For the 12 months ended April 30, the $277.5-million Transamerica fund posted a return of 63.24%.

“We can’t say enough about his recent and long-term performance,” said Robert A. Day, chairman and chief executive of TCW, with $50 billion in assets. “We expect him to be a big plus for our clients and a key part of our effort to grow our core equity business.”

TCW and Bickerstaff, who will manage more than $3 billion in assets at TCW, are looking into the possibility of starting a new retail fund for individual investors.

The hiring move is the latest attempt by Los Angeles-based TCW, which has primarily managed traditional company pension funds, to make inroads into the fast-growing 401(k) business. In April, TCW said it would team up with Ibbotson Associates to provide investment advice to employees at companies that use TCW as their 401(k) manager.

In October, TCW became the first money manager to get permission from the Labor Department to advise investors on their 401(k) choices but agreed to hire an independent advisor.