B of A Investment Unit to Seek New Owner

Citing the likelihood of major layoffs, BankAmerica Corp. said its San Francisco-based investment firm Robertson Stephens will seek another owner now that B of A plans to merge with NationsBank Corp. Charlotte, N.C.-based NationsBank owns Robertson’s cross-town rival, Montgomery Securities, and a merger of the two investment houses raised the prospect of such worker overlap that “a substantial number of employees from a combined company would be laid off,” Michael McCaffery, chief executive of Robertson Stephens, told a news conference. He said Robertson Stephens, which employs about 900 people, already has been contacted by “multiple potential partners,” but he declined to name any of the suitors. BankAmerica bought Robertson Stephens last October for $540 million. BankAmerica shares fell $2 to close at $86.44 on the New York Stock Exchange.