Cruttenden Roth Sells RedChip Stake

Newport Beach investment banker Cruttenden Roth has sold a 10% stake in RedChip.com Inc., a research firm specializing in small-company stocks, to a Hong Kong investment company for $2 million.

Officials say the deal with Celestial Asia Securities Holdings Ltd. is the first step in a global expansion of the RedChip, a Portland, Ore., research company that operates a Web site and publishes the Red Chip Review.

“We’d like to expand and deliver RedChip reports on an international basis,” said Byron Roth, chairman of Cruttenden Roth, which bought a controlling stake in RedChip in August.

Celestial Asia Securities said it plans to translate RedChip’s research reports and offer them to the company’s investment clients online. Eventually, Celestial hopes to launch a research firm for small-company stocks in Asia.

Roth, whose company now controls a 55% stake in RedChip, said he plans to strike similar deals with companies in other countries.