Wells Fargo & Co. bailout warrants sold for $849 million in the third-biggest auction for the government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program, helping the U.S. defray costs of rescuing the banking system. The bank bought 64 percent of the deal.
The 110.3 million warrants from San Francisco-based Wells Fargo fetched $7.70 each, compared with the U.S. Treasury Department’s minimum bid of $6.50, netting $840.4 million after commissions and fees.
In a related development, the Treasury Department has hired Lazard Freres & Co. as its adviser to prepare for an initial public stock offering by General Motors Co. The Treasury owns 61 percent of GM. The IPO would allow the government to begin recouping its investment. GM CEO Ed Whitacre has said he expects an IPO in late 2010 or early 2011.
