Lehman couldn't secure Korean Funds: report : US Business

(Reuters) - Lehman Brothers Chief Executive Dick Fuld nearly struck a deal to raise almost $5 billion from South Korean wealth funds and institutions but the pact disintegrated, the New York Post said citing sources familiar with the matter.

One source told the paper that Lehman was aiming to raise more capital than the Korean investor was willing to invest at the time.

The precise terms of the deal could not be learned, the paper said.

Lehman has more than $60 billion of mortgage and mortgage security exposure, where losses are creeping higher even on loans to the highest quality borrowers.

The investment bank is considering selling at least part of its asset management unit, one of its best-performing assets, people close to the matter said on Monday.

Shares of the fourth-largest U.S. investment bank fell 13.04 percent, or $1.96, to close at $13.07 Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

Lehman could not be immediately reached for comment. (Reporting by Ajay Kamalakaran in Bangalore; Editing by Erica Billingham)

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