Judge Gives OK to Barclays-Lehman Deal

Lehman Brothers' planned sale of its investment banking and trading businesses to Barclays has received the approval of a bankruptcy judge, according to a published media report.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge James Peck said just after midnight Saturday that the sale could go through, according to an AP report.

The size of the deal was in flux, the report said. Although the purchase was valued at $1.75 billion earlier this week, lawyers announced changes to its terms Friday, and it now may be worth closer to $1.35 billion, according the report.

Lehman Brothers was forced to file for bankruptcy protection Monday after talks last weekend with potential buyers Barclays and Bank of America(BAC) failed to bear fruit.

Barclays then stepped in with its offer to scoop up Lehman's investment banking unit.

Judge Peck's decision came during a hearing that began at 4:30 p.m. EDT Friday and continued until well after midnight, the AP report said.

Before the hearing, Lehman's lawyers announced a number of changes to the deal's terms, the report said. For example, the value of stock and liabilities that Barclays will receive fell over the course of the week because of market movements. Now, Barclays plans to buy $47.4 billion in securities and assume $45.5 billion in liabilities, according to the report.

The report also said that Barclays now plans to buy three other Lehman businesses: Lehman Brothers Canada; Lehman Brothers Sudamerica SA, which is based in Argentina; and Lehman Brothers Uruguay SA. Barclays will not pay extra for the three additional units, the report added.

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