UBS Completes Distressed Debt Sale

UBS(UBS Quote) on early Wednesday said it had sold $15 billion in risky mortgage-related securities at a steep discount to a distressed asset fund managed by BlackRock(BLK Quote).

The positions, primarily subprime and Alt-A, had a nominal value of $22 billion, UBS said in a statement. The Zurich, Switzerland-based bank signaled the sale earlier this month when it reported a first-quarter writedown of $19.5 billion tied to U.S. real estate and structured credit.

"Risk reduction remains a critical part of our ongoing financial restructuring and this sale is a big step towards further reducing our positions in this asset class," UBS Group CEO Marcel Rohner said in a company statement. "We continue to manage our legacy risks in a flexible and creative way in the best interests of our shareholders."

BlackRock is 49%-owned by Merrill Lynch(MER Quote), which along with Citigroup(C Quote) has been one of the hardest hit U.S. banks in the credit crisis.

UBS' Swiss rival Credit Suisse(CS Quote) and Germany's Deutsche Bank(DB Quote) also have been hit hard by writedowns in the first quarter.