Wall Street online news provider
TheStreet.com has
formed TheStreet.com (Europe) Ltd., and will launch
TheStreet.co.uk in early 2000.
Backing the new venture is a team of investors led
by Chase Capital Partners that includes Barclays Private
Equity, ETF Group, and 3i. Chase Capital Partners previously
led the initial investments into TheStreet.com and has now
put $17 million into the company for its minority stake.
“Investors in the U.S. and the UK are separated by thousands
of miles, but they share the same information needs,” said
Kevin W. English, chairman and CEO of TheStreet.com.
“TheStreet.co.uk will provide compelling financial news and
investment commentary about the UK and other markets, updated
throughout the trading day.”
The announcement of the move, which came over the
weekend, coincides with GlobalNetFinancial’s major
content deal with pan-European ISP World Online
International. Clearly, the competition to provide
financial news via the Internet in Europe is becoming
very intense.
Claudia Jay, the former head of product development for
FT.com, has been appointed managing director of
TheStreet.co.uk. She said that the new site aimed
to become the number-one online financial news and
information destination in the UK.
“In the UK alone, there are an estimated 12 million
web users, an increasing number of whom are individual
investors seeking timely financial news and insight,” said
Jay.
“We are serving a new generation of people who demand
information that keeps pace with the markets.”
Another early recruit is Martin Baker, an associate editor
of Sunday Business, who becomes editor-in-chief of the
UK site. He is currently assembling a team of financial
journalists who will provide news and commentary on UK
markets.