In Brief: B of A: More Shaw-Related Losses May Loom

BankAmerica Corp. may report more losses in the fourth quarter resulting from its exposure to D.E. Shaw & Co.

In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing this week, the banking company said the bad news stemming from its exposure to the New York trading and investment firm may go beyond the $372 million charge taken in the third quarter.

The company said it may also report losses on $20 billion of fixed- income securities it bought from D.E. Shaw in October and on the $1 billion it still has invested in the firm.

"Markets continue to be volatile, and the corporation anticipates that it may likely recognize losses," the company said in its filing. A spokesman said the size of potential losses is unclear.

Analysts said they expect BankAmerica to report several other fourth- quarter charges, including further trading losses and an after-tax charge of roughly $40 million resulting from its Nov. 12 settlement of a municipal bond-related lawsuit in California.

"It will be less noisy than the third-quarter report, but there will still be some cleanup so BankAmerica can clear the slate for better performance in 1999," said Joseph K. Morford, an analyst at Van Kasper & Co., San Francisco.

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