Financial Roundup: Prudential to Sell Wachovia Share, Credit Suisse Takes Hit, Money Available for Private Equity, Some Credit Thawing

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Prudential to sell Wachovia share — Prudential Financial is expected to sell to Wells Fargo & Co. its $3.7 billion share of Wachovia, which is being bought by Wells. Meanwhile, Prudential is said to be interested in buying AIG’s life insurance business in Japan. [Source: MoneyCNN.com]

Credit Suisse takes big hit — Credit Suisse Group has lost $2.48 billion in two months and will lay off 5,300 workers. Most of the job losses will be at the bank’s investment unit. [Source: The Wall Street Journal]

Private equity firms get money — Despite the financial crisis, private equity firms are have no trouble raising capital. Carlyle Group has pulled in nearly $14 billion for one of its funds and emerging market specialist Actis has closed a fund at $2.9 billion, exceeding its goa of $2.5 billion. [Source: CFO.com]

Some credit thaws out — Government buys of commercial paper seem to have stabilized some markets such as credit cards and auto and home buying. But the actions have not stimulated much real lending. [Source: The Wall Street Journal]

Lower mortgage rates get mixed reaction — Washington’s plans to lower mortgage rates to 4.5 percent are drawing frowns in Minnesota. Realtors there say officials should be concentrating more on propping up home values. [Source: StarTribune.com]

Tags: Credit Suisse First Boston, Private Equity, Financial, Prudential Insurance Company Of America, Wachovia Corp., Carlyle Group, Financial Services, Investment, Insurance, Financial Planning, Finance, Business Operations, Corporate Insurance, Peter Galuszka

Peter Galuszka is a Virginia-based journalist with more than three decades of experience, including 15 years at BusinessWeek, during which he was twice Moscow Bureau Chief and International News Editor in New York.