Warren Buffett's $5 bln investment in Goldman Sachs brought good news to global markets worried that architects of a $700 bln bailout plan would not be able to convince U.S. lawmakers to move swiftly.
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group also plans to invest in Goldman, Japanese media reported on Wednesday, in what would be the country's third big investment on Wall Street this week as its well-capitalised banks take advantage of global upheaval to expand aggressively abroad.
SMFG, which is Japan's third-largest bank and has a long relationship with Goldman, said the bank had no deal in place.
Stocks in Asia gained slightly and U.S. Treasury yields rose after news of the Goldman stake purchase by one of the world's most respected investors.
CNN reported that the FBI was investigating Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc and insurer American International Group Inc and their senior executives for potential mortgage fraud.
The bureau was trying to determine whether anyone in those financial institutions had any responsibility for providing "misinformation," CNN reported.
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll, meanwhile, showed that Democrat Barack Obama has opened a 9-point lead over Republican John McCain in the U.S. presidential race amid turmoil in the financial system and growing pessimism about the economy.
The MSCI index of Asian shares outside Japan edged up 0.16%, and Tokyo, which was closed on Tuesday for a public holiday, rose 0.2%. Stocks in Europe were set to open slightly higher.
"We've still got plenty of uncertainty ahead of U.S. Congress approving the rescue package," said Sarah-Jane Wagg, president director of UBS Securities Indonesia in Jakarta.
Globally, investor nerves are frayed by two weeks of unprecedented financial markets turmoil.
In Hong Kong, Bank of East Asia was forced to deny rumours questioning its stability, which had sent its shares down as much as 11% and drew hundreds of customers to at least one of its branches. The bank said its capital adequacy ratio of 14.6% was well-above international requirements.
Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway surprised markets with a deal that could give it a stake of up to 9% in Goldman, helping U.S. stock futures pare losses after Wall Street declined. Goldman also announced plans to sell $2.5 bln in common stock.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told lawmakers during five hours of hearings on Tuesday that the bailout was "sad" and "embarrassing", but needed to stave off a deep recession and restore confidence in markets.
Andrew Barrett, managing director and strategist with Citi Private Client Investment in Hong Kong, said there is sufficient political will in Congress to approve the plan.
"We believe the buyout package that has been proposed by the Treasury and the Federal Reserve will be passed, and we hope it will be passed by the end of this week. Markets will need to see this happen or we will have another leg down in the major global indices," he said.
While Paulson spoke, the U.S. Federal Reserve was forced to inject another $2 bln into the troubled financial system to help mutual funds that were scrambling to raise cash to meet heavy withdrawals by rattled customers.
After lawmakers scoffed at the proposed bailout's enormous size and the lack of detail, U.S. stocks closed down about 1.5% on uncertainty over when and how Washington would act.
U.S. House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank warned the plan might not pass until Monday, adding that the Democrat-controlled Congress needed limits on compensation for executives of firms offloading bad assets.
"We still expect the plan to be approved by this weekend, but the likelihood of such an outcome declined, and the size of the bailout might be curbed," Dariusz Kowalczyk, chief investment strategist at CFC Seymour in Hong Kong, said in a note.
GOLDMAN IN SPOTLIGHT
Once thought untouchable, Goldman was shaken last week by a sudden slide in its shares. Goldman and rival Morgan Stanley secured approval this week to become commercial banks.
With Japanese banks investing in western peers, speculation has swirled that SMFG might invest in Goldman, but SMFG spokeswoman Chika Togawa said: "At this point it is not true that we've decided to invest in Goldman Sachs."
A Goldman spokesman said he could not confirm a Kyodo news agency report of an investment by SMFG.
Berkshire will buy $5 bln of Goldman perpetual preferred stock that carries a 10% dividend. It also will receive warrants to buy $5 bln of common stock, or 43.5 mln shares, at $115 per share, within five years, which could give it a roughly 9% stake in Goldman.
Late on Tuesday, top Japanese brokerage Nomura Holdings Inc agreed to buy bankrupt Lehman's Europe and Middle East operations. Nomura had already agreed to buy Lehman's operations in Asia.
That came on the heels of Japan's top bank, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc, agreeing to buy up to 20% of Morgan Stanley.
