May 23 (Bloomberg) -- Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick has let top White House officials know that he will leave his position soon, probably for a job with a Wall Street firm, if he isn't picked to replace John Snow as Treasury secretary, two persons familiar with the matter said.

A prominent Republican close to the White House said Zoellick told administration officials in unmistakable terms of his plans and that the No. 2 U.S. diplomat has received indications that President George W. Bush is unlikely to tap him for the Treasury job. A person close to Zoellick said he talked privately over the last several weeks about leaving and possibly taking a job on Wall Street.

Zoellick, 52, reached by telephone tonight, said he wouldn't comment. He has been a pivotal part of the administration, first as U.S. trade representative in Bush's first term and more recently as a top diplomat guiding U.S. policy toward China and trouble spots such as Sudan.

There has been speculation for more than a year that Snow would be replaced. And now, some top Republican officials, with only second-hand knowledge of Bush's thinking, say a replacement may come soon, although they don't know who or when.

The Financial Times reported today that Zoellick is preparing to leave the administration and has held talks with Wall Street investment banks on job options, citing people close to the administration. The newspaper also said Zoellick had talked to Merrill Lynch & Co.

In March, Zoellick was spotted by a reporter visiting the executive suites of Merrill Lynch's headquarters in lower Manhattan. Merrill spokesman Jason Wright declined to comment.

Pivotal Player

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack and White House spokesman Tony Snow said they wouldn't speak about a personnel matter. Treasury Spokesman Brookly McLaughlin also declined to comment on personnel matters.

Zoellick has staked out tough policy positions. In a speech on China in New York on Sept. 21, Zoellick triggered gasps in the audience of China experts by urging China to be a ``responsible stakeholder'' in the international system.

``There's actually a literature that's developing in China,'' Zoellick said in a March interview, about ``the meaning'' of his message in the speech.

He persuaded some feuding rebel groups in the restive western Sudanese area of Darfur to sign a peace agreement with the government after four sleepless nights of negotiations earlier this month in Abuja, Nigeria.

``He's what we call in French `tout terrain,''' said Pascal Lamy, head of the World Trade Organization, using the term for an all-terrain vehicle, to describe Zoellick in a March interview.

U.S. Senator John Sununu, a New Hampshire Republican, called Zoellick ``among the most intelligent people that I've seen working in this administration.''

During the Clinton administration, Zoellick was a senior international adviser for Goldman Sachs & Co. and served as executive vice president at Washington-based Fannie Mae, the nation's largest mortgage finance company.

To contact the reporter on this story: Janine Zacharia in Washington at jzacharia@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: May 23, 2006 22:08 EDT