Treasury Mulls Private Role in TARP: Report

The Treasury Department, signaling a new phase in its $700 billion financial-rescue plan, is considering requiring that firms seeking future government money raise private capital in order to qualify for public assistance, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The move isn't expected to apply to the existing $250 billion capital-purchase program, which is already injecting money into banks. But Treasury is considering attaching such conditions to any of its future capital investments, the newspaper reports, citing people familiar with the matter.

Treasury also is unlikely to conduct any auctions to purchase bad loans and other troubled assets -- the original intention of the $700 billion rescue plan. Instead, Treasury is expected to continue focusing on injecting capital directly into the financial sector, the Journal reports. ...