Wells Fargo Asset Management has acquired a minority stake in The Rock Creek Group, a Washington, DC-based fund of hedge funds firm. The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Rock Creek, which has approximately $7 billion in assets under management, provides commingled and customized multi-manager alternatives and long-only investment products to institutional clients. The 50-member team, whose members have a majority equity stake in the firm, will remain independent with no change in its structure, investment philosophy or process. WFAM may acquire additional ownership interests in Rock Creek through long-term put and call arrangements.

“Our clients have expressed their desire for increased alternative investment solutions, and this partnership allows us to meet those needs," Michael Niedermeyer, chief executive of Wells Fargo Asset Management, said in a statement.

While, currently, all Rock Creek’s clients are institutional investors, Bloomberg reports that Wells Fargo may eventually seek to make its strategies available to retail investors.