Muzinich poaches four ECM portfolio managers to kick-start loans -sources

* Ronberg, Woolrich, McGairl and Fuller to depart

* Team (NYSE: TISI - news) to join Muzinich & Co with brief to grow its loans book

* Collectively ran over $870 mln across two ECM funds

By Maiya Keidan

LONDON, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Asset manager Muzinich & Co has hired four portfolio managers from London hedge fund ECM Asset Management who collectively ran 775 million euros ($873.35 million), two sources told Reuters.

Credit-focused Muzinich has hired Torben Ronberg, Alex Woolrich, Sam McGairl and Stuart Fuller to expand its small loan offering, one source told Reuters.

Muzinich was founded in New York in 1988 and offers alternative credit and absolute return strategies. It invests across senior loans and high yield bonds in developed and emerging markets.

ECM this year shut down its Absolute Return Credit Fund which had peaked at 143 million euros in February 2013, a spokesman for Wells Fargo (Hanover: NWT.HA - news) , which owns ECM, said.

Ronberg, Woolrich, McGairl and Fuller collectively ran both the 318 million euro ECM Senior Secured Credit and the 457 million euro ECM Loans strategies, according to documents reporting 2015 assets under management on its website.

Investors were notified last week that the portfolio managers were leaving ECM, one source told Reuters.

The ECM Senior Secured Credit Strategy, which invests in bank loans and bonds, has made gains of 4.74 percent since its inception in 2012.

The ECM loans strategy, which invests mainly in sub-investment grade credit, has returned 5.07 percent since inception in 2006.

Credit hedge funds have made average gains of 4.14 percent over the past five years, data from industry tracker Hedge Fund Research shows.

McGairl declined to comment when contacted by Reuters while the Ronberg, Woolrich and Fuller did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

A spokesman for Wells Fargo declined to comment on what will happen to the $873.35 million in assets managed by the four portfolio managers.

ECM had a 22-strong investment team prior to the news of the departures, according to its website.

($1 = 0.8874 euros) (Editing by Jason Neely)