Wall Street firm Morgan Stanley is pursuing a potential plan to contribute its Van Kampen mutual-fund business to a joint venture with a much larger partner, people familiar with the matter said.

Wall Street has been abuzz about what Morgan Stanley may do with the Van Kampen unit, which recently held about $86bn (€60.5bn) in assets. One leading view is that Morgan Stanley would simply sell it off. But lately the New York investment bank has been leaning more toward a JV, say people familiar with the matter.