Fortress Investment Group, Bank of China

Fortress Investment Group LLC posted a loss in profits in the first quarter, while the Bank of China posted a gain. Fortress recorded a loss in the fourth quarter due to compensation-related expenses related to its initial public offering last February. The Chicago-based hedge fund and private equity firm lost $29 million, or 43 cents per share in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, compared to a net income of $290 million in the year-ago period. Excluding principals agreement charges related to the IPO, fourth-quarter net income was $27 million. Fee paying assets increased 59% to $33.2 billion compared to the year-ago period. For the year, Fortress posted a loss of $59.8 million, or $2.14 per share, as revenue fell to $1.24 billion from $1.52 billion in 2006. The Bank of China posted a 31% increase in net profit on stronger interest income, despite writing down $1.3 billion in investments linked to U.S. subprime mortgages. The Beijing-based bank’s net profit totaled 56.25 billion ($7.98 billion), up from 42.83 billion yuan in 2006. The value of its subprime asset-backed securities totaled $4.99 billion as of Dec. 31. The bank had previously disclosed only the value of its subprime investments until September, when the bank said it had $8 billion tied to the risky mortgages.