Wednesday, May 20, 2009

BofA seeks to repay $45 billion by year-end

(Reuters) - Bank of America Corp wants to pay back $45 billion in bail-out funds by the end of the year, accelerated by a program to raise capital, the Financial Times reported on its website late on Wednesday.

The largest U.S. bank by assets is on track to raise more than $35 billion in capital by the end of September, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Bank of America said on Tuesday it raised $13.47 billion through a share sale, marking a major step toward meeting the U.S. government's requirements for capital-raising following the recent "stress testing" of the bank.

Including proceeds from the sale of part of its stake in China Construction Bank Corp for $7.3 billion, the bank is now more than halfway to plugging a $33.9 billion capital shortfall identified by the government.

The report also said the bank is in negotiations to sell some of its non-core assets.

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