There was a lot of concern not too long ago about sovereign wealth funds buying up U.S. assets. When it comes to the financial services industry, the grumbling has been muted somewhat by some big losses. The latest: Temasek Holdings, the Singapore state investment company, has pulled the trigger on its massive investment in Bank of America, selling its 3.8 percent stake.

According to the Financial Times, Temasek likely has lost at least $2 billion on an investment that began with it investing $5 billion in Merrill Lynch in December 2007. It invested another $900 million last July and became its biggest shareholder, with a 13.7 percent stake. It held 219.7 million Merrill shares at the end of 2008. After the Bank of America deal, Temasek's Merrill shares turned into 188.8 million Bank of America shares, valued at $13.70 at the time of the merger. It subsequently traded as low as $2.53. 

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