Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. is in talks to acquire a large stake in major money manager BlackRock Inc. for $8 billion, the Wall Street Journal's online edition reported on Sunday.
Citing people familiar with the matter, the Journal said such a deal would create a $1 trillion fund-management colossus and transform Merrill Lynch, the largest retail brokerage firm in the United States.
The online edition of The New York Times reported that Merrill is nearing a deal to sell its asset management division to BlackRock in exchange for a large stake in BlackRock, citing people close to the discussions.
Merrill Lynch would be stepping into a void created by the recent failure of talks between rival Morgan Stanley and BlackRock, the Journal said.
Final terms were being worked out over the weekend, the Journal reported, adding that it was possible the deal could fall apart at the final hour.
Merrill Lynch and BlackRock were not immediately available for comment late on Sunday.
The Journal report said Merrill may take less than a 50 percent stake in BlackRock.
Merrill is a major seller of stock mutual funds, while BlackRock is a leading player in funds that offer fixed-income investments, the Journal said.
Together, the two firms would have about $1 trillion in assets under management, the reports said.
Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services Group Inc., Pennsylvania's largest bank, owns about 62 percent of BlackRock.
Since its founding in 1988, BlackRock has grown rapidly to become one of the largest U.S. money managers, with $453 billion in assets under management. It is led by chief executive Lawrence Fink, a former Credit Suisse First Boston fixed-income executive.
