Reuters – Bridgewater Associates Inc, one of the world’s biggest hedge-fund managers, said on Tuesday it might be interested in participating in the U.S. Treasury’s public-private investment program, calling it a "big transfer of money from the government to the banks and to the buyers."

Bridgewater manages roughly $80 billion in global investments for a wide array of institutional clients, including foreign governments and central banks.

In a letter to clients, Bridgewater said its interest in buying the distressed assets under the terms being offered would depend on the pricing and on "whether we can get over our fears of partnering with the government."

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Street.Com – Battered hedge funds may still be the best-looking clients out there for banks, which face a dearth of opportunities to do deals in the dead M&A and IPO markets.

The business of providing an array of services to hedge funds, known as prime brokerage, went up for grabs in 2008. It is highly specialized, expensive, and difficult to run, but potentially very lucrative. It typically accounts for about 6% of Goldman Sachs’ revenues, though that does not include ancillary benefits, like trading commissions.

In the fourth quarter, Goldman’s first money-losing effort as a public company, prime brokerage helped offset some of the damage. The $799 million the business accounted for some 15% of total revenues.  

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