Sumco in talks to raise Y15 bln from bank-led fund -source

TOKYO, March 8 (Reuters) - Japan's Sumco is in final talks with a turnaround fund backed by the country's major banks to raise 15 billion yen ($186 million) by issuing preferred shares, a source familiar with the deal said on Thursday.

The investment, the source said, would be part of a 45 billion-yen capital raising previously announced by Sumco, the world's second-largest producer of silicon semiconductor wafers.

Sumco declined to confirm the news, saying in a statement that it was not based on information released by the company.

The fund, Japan Industrial Solutions, was established in 2010. Its major shareholders include Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Mizuho Corporate Bank and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp ($1 = 80.8350 Japanese yen) (Reporting by Taiga Uranaka; Editing by Edmund Klamann)