Lehman Brothers, one of the best-known investment banks in the US, is seeking to settle a deal with the Korea Development Bank this week which will bring in billions of dollars in exchange for a stake in the Wall Street firm.

Even though there was no official announcement from the state-run KDB, the online edition of Korea Economic Daily cited an anonymous government source saying that officials are still evaluating Lehman’s survival potential and public sentiment on the buyout. Media reports in Korea have repeatedly pointed out that an investment in Lehman Brothers would offer KDB a great opportunity of gaining a foothold in global financial market.

However the Vice Chairman of Financial Services Commission, South Korea said that as yet KDB had not submitted any proposals to the regulatory body whose approval is necessary in case of major investments abroad.

Lehman Brothers intend to raise as much as $6 billion from KDB in exchange of a stake in the firm besides offloading multi-billion real estate loans in the form of separate unit to shareholders and external investors.

Along with KDB, Lehman Brothers is also in talks with other global companies like the Chinese brokerage firm Citic Securities as well as sovereign wealth funds from Middle Eastern nations like Abu Dhabi and Qatar.