Carlyle Group, Blackstone Group LP and TPG are leading a group of bidders in talks to buy Bank of America Corp.â??s First Republic Bank, the San Francisco-based bank that caters to wealthy individuals.

Carlyle and Blackstone and TPG may partner with First Republic Chairman James H. Herbert II. Bank of America is considering selling businesses including First Republic and Columbia Management Group as it seeks to raise capital, Chief Financial Officer Joe Price said during a conference call last month.

First Republic, inherited by Bank of America through its takeover of Merrill Lynch & Co., may fetch $700m, according to CreditSights Inc.

Merrill Lynch bought the bank, which had assets of $15.3bn at the end of 2007, for $1.8bn that same year.