CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Bank of America Corp. said Wednesday that it had agreed to sell First Republic Bank, a private bank it inherited from Merrill Lynch & Co., to a group of investors.

The buying group is led by the private-equity firms General Atlantic LLC and Colony Capital. As part of the deal, the bank's top management, including its founder and chairman, James Herbert II, will stay on board.

Bank of America did not disclose terms of the deal. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier that the price would be more than $1 billion. It cited an unidentified person familiar with the matter.

Bank of America shares fell 10 cents to $16.91 in afternoon trading.

First Republic was purchased by Merrill Lynch for $1.8 billion in September 2007. The New York brokerage ran First Republic as a separate unit, maintaining its name and management. Bank of America bought Merrill Lynch on Jan. 1.

As of Sept. 30, First Republic had $19 billion in total assets, $16 billion in deposits, and $15 billion in wealth management assets under management.

Questions about First Republic's future have swirled ever since Bank of America agreed in September 2008 to buy Merrill Lynch. Bank of America already had a wealth-management business, U.S. Trust, which was acquired from Charles Schwab.

Bank of America is working to bolster its capital ratios and shed any units that are no longer strategic fits. Last month, it announced plans sell the long-term asset management business of Columbia Management to Ameriprise Financial Inc. for up to $1.2 billion. SUBHEAD: First Republic Bank is to go to an investment group.

Originally published by IEVA M. AUGSTUMS Associated Press.

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