Pacific Life has taken a pass on an option to sell its remaining stake in Newport Beach, California-based Pimco to Allianz. The Frankfurt Germany-based Allianz would have had to pony up as much as $2.0 billion to buy out Pacific Life's 30 percent stake in the fund manager.

Allianz purchased its 70 percent stake in the firm in 1999 for 3.7 billion Euros. That deal pegged the value of Pacific Life's stake in Pimco at roughly $1.7 billion. The deal also gave Pacific Life the option of selling its remaining stake to Allianz on the last day of any quarter after 2002.

Today, though, Allianz confirmed that it has struck a deal that will keep the current ownership structure intact for the coming years. There have also been unsubstantiated published reports that Allianz is shopping Pimco. The German firm has denied those reports.

Pimco's value has likely risen since the initial sale as it has been one of the fastest growing fund firms in the United States. The Pimco Total Return fund, which now held $68.1 billion in assets at the end of 2002, and the rest of Pimco's fixed income business have driven much of that growth. At the end of February Pimco reported $304 billion in total assets under management, or roughly 25 percent more than it had at the start of 2002.

Pimco employees more than 500 people in the United States and recently opened a new office in New York City. The firm also runs its fixed income management from Newport Beach and its equity funds from Stamford, Connecticut. 

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