Team Up

Bear Stearns, China's Citic to Invest in Each Other Oct. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Bear Stearns Cos., reeling from mortgage-related losses, shored up investor support by selling a stake to China's government-controlled Citic Securities Co. and gaining a foothold in the world's best-performing stock market.

Citic, Asia's largest securities firm, will pay $1 billion for the equivalent of 6 percent of New York-based Bear Stearns's shares, and the U.S. brokerage will invest the same amount in Citic, the companies said in a statement today. They agreed to team up to sell financial products and services in China, and plan a Hong Kong-based joint venture for other Asian markets.