Bear Stearns sought rescue financing from Temasek of Singapore in the days before its sale to JPMorgan Chase but was rebuffed, underscoring the growing reluctance of sovereign wealth funds to make high-profile investments. Temasek received the request for money on March 14, the Friday of the weekend when the deal to sell Bear was brokered by the Fed and other US regulators, people familiar with the matter say. Temasek, one of the few SWFs with the internal capability to vet complex transactions, declined for practical and political reasons, including lack of time for due diligence given the Monday morning deadline set by Bear’s advisers at Lazard Freres for a response.
