Zurich - Swiss Re said Friday it had finalized a deal to sell Berkshire Hathaway convertible bonds worth 3 billion francs (2.51 billion dollars), but that it had left open the option to buy back the paper should it be able to raise the needed funds.

Swiss Re announced net losses in 2008 of 864 million francs and incurred 5.9 billion francs in write downs on assets, following the financial crisis.

The downturn sent the re-insurer, the world's second largest, to seek the capital from Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway, which would give the firm a 20 per cent stake in the Swiss company. Swiss Re was also considering raising another 2 billion francs from other investors.

Peter Forstmoser, the chairman of Swiss Re, announced this week that he would resign from the board and be replaced by Walter Kielholz, the current chairman of Credit Suisse. The CEO was also replaced, with Stefan Lippe taking over the executive role last month. (dpa)