S.Korea KIC Says Reinvested Half of BofA Dividend in Bank

South Korea's sovereign wealth fund said it had reinvested $78 million, around half the dividend it received from its $2 billion investment in Bank of America , back in the U.S. bank's shares this year.

Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) had suffered large valuation losses from the 2008 investment of $2 billion in then Merrill Lynch, which was acquired by Bank of America later that year.

We received $145 million in dividends since our initial investment and spent $78 million of the payout purchasing BofA stocks seven times since January this year, the fund said in a statement.

The investment was made based on views from global investment banks and our internal review that its stocks are undervalued, the statement said.

The fund said it has yet to decide whether to reinvest the remaining dividend, adding spending plans would be made according to global economic and financial market conditions.

The statement came after a local media report late on Monday that the fund was considering investing another $50 million in BofA stocks on top of $100 million worth it bought early this year.

KIC was set up in 2005 and is now managing $35 billion entrusted by the government and the central bank.