Two big growth fund shops are on the block

This is anything but surprising: Putnam Investments and MFS Investment Management are up for sale. We've been talking about more deals in the asset management business for a while now. And Marsh & McLennan, the parent of Putnam, says it has fielded a lot of feelers--so many that it makes sense to gauge the value of potential deals. SunLife, a Canadian insurer, has likewise hired investment banks to shop MFS. The question now is who is going to buy them? Most big diversified firms may pass given the regulatory climate: count out Merrill Lynch and Citigroup right off the bat. Another fund firm may want their growth funds. We'll have to see. Some think a spin-off may make sense.

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- Here's a MarketWatch article