Thatcher hired by controversial investment fund

BARONESS Thatcher has been hired as an adviser to one of the world's largest investment firms, a hedge fund famed for its aggressive and confrontational business approach.

Ironically, it was hedge funds, companies which speculate in currency and share movements, which forced sterling out of the Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM) in 1992.

Tiger Management yesterday said it was "an honour" to have the former prime minister on its staff. Lady Thatcher is to sit on Tiger Management's advisory board, which counts Bob Dole, the former US senator, among its 10 members.

A spokesman for Lady Thatcher declined to say how much she would be paid for her services. However, sources said it was not uncommon for high-profile figures to receive six figure sums in these circumstances.

Julian Robertson, founder and director of New York-based Tiger Management, and rumoured to be one of the best-paid men on Wall Street, said: "The advisory board plays a vital part at Tiger and we are honoured to have Lady Thatcher as a member".

A spokesperson for the company said Lady Thatcher would be advising on "financial, political and economic issues". He said the former Tory leader was "one of the most respected individuals on the globe".

A spokesperson for Lady Thatcher said: "She has known the company for some years and, more recently, was asked whether she would join the advisory board". The spokesperson added that the board generally met between four and six times a year, and Lady Thatcher expected to attend her first meeting in July.

Tiger Management, with around $18bn (pounds 10.8bn) of total assets, is the world's second largest hedge fund. The largest hedge fund in the world is Soros Fund Management, headed by the controversial George Soros.

George Soros achieved notoriety back in 1992 when it emerged that he had earned more than $1bn from betting that the pound would fall out of the ERM. More recently, Mr Soros hit the headlines again when it was rumoured that he had bet $8bn that the pound would fall against the Deutschmark.

A spokesperson for Tiger Management declined to discuss whether his company was actively involved in forcing the pound from the ERM. The spokesperson added that Tiger primarily invested in company shares, although it did occasionally invest in commodities and currencies.

This is not the first controversial career move Baroness Thatcher has made since resigning as Prime Minister. Philip Morris, the US tobacco giant whose cigarette brands include Marlboro, has hired the former prime minster as a consultant, for an annual salary rumoured to lie between pounds 250,000 and pounds 750,000. Lady Thatcher has also made regular appearances on the lucrative international lecture circuit.

Tiger Management was founded in 1980, and at the time had total assets of just $8m. Its phenomenal growth rate has made Mr Robertson, its founder, one of the US's wealthiest men. Back in 1996, Mr Robertson's annual salary was $300m (pounds 180m), according to Financial World magazine, making him Wall Street's second best-paid man. His rival Mr Soros was the highest-paid individual on Wall Street.