BofA Closing $12B Fund

Bank of America's(BAC Quote) asset management unit is shutting down a $12 billion money market fund after several large institutional investors took their money out amid losses on certain asset-backed securities, reports say.

Columbia Management, which has $709 billion in assets under management, is closing the Columbia Strategic Cash Portfolio fund. Just a few months ago, the fund had about $40 billion in assets, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The Columbia fund was an enhanced money fund -- a short-term investment pool that offered higher yields than a traditional money-market fund, the Journal reported. Unlike traditional money-market funds, the Strategic Cash fund didn't offer investors a guarantee that it would maintain a $1-per-share net asset value, although the fund was managed toward that goal, the Journal said. ...