The top executive of South Korea's Korea Development Bank on Thursday looked back on the deal that didn't materialize between the bank and Lehman Brothers, saying KDB valued Lehman's broker-dealer operation and investment management business, including Neuberger Berman, at KRW 5 trillion (U.S. $4.4 billion), Dow Jones reports.

"What we had offered to pay was a third of what Lehman had wanted and half of its market value," KDB Chief Executive Min Euoo-sun told a National Assembly committee reviewing the bank's operations. Min led Lehman Brothers' Korea operation for three years prior to joining KDB.

According to the report, KDB offered $6.40 a share for a controlling stake in a "stripped-clean" version of the two units in late August, including a 30 percent managerial control premium.

In mid-July, Lehman reached out to KDB regarding the possibility of purchasing Lehman shares directly from the market through a tender officer, Min said. 

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