Bank of America agrees settlement ahead of FX rate manipulation class action lawsuit

Scott + Scott, Attorneys at Law, LLP has today announced that it has reached an agreement in principle with Bank of America, N.A., on behalf of a proposed class action lawsuit in relation to Foreign Exchange Benchmark Rates Antitrust Litigation, Case No. 1:13-cv-7789 (S.D.N.Y.), clearly showing that the fiscal penalties for large banks involved in the FX rate manipulation case did not stop with the regulators.

The settlement agreement includes both monetary relief and cooperation to the plaintiffs in their prosecution of claims against the remaining defendants.

The terms of the agreements will mirror those that Scott + Scott previously reached in two other settlements in the lawsuit which was originally filed in November of 2013. In January 2015, the firm announced a settlement with JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) and JPM Chase Bank, N.A. for $99.5 million, in addition to their cooperation.

In March 2015, Scott+Scott announced that it had reached a settlement with UBS AG (SWX:UBSN), UBS Group AG, and UBS Securities LLC for $135 million, in addition to their cooperation. The case is pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, before Judge Lorna G. Schofield, who denied the defendants’ motion to dismiss on January 28, 2015.

“This latest settlement sends a message to Wall Street banks that their longstanding practice of putting their own interests ahead of their customers in the foreign exchange market must end,” commented David R. Scott, Managing Partner of Scott+Scott. “We look forward to prosecuting our claims against the remaining defendants.”

“This latest agreement with Bank of America will offer further compensation for victims,” said Christopher M. Burke, lead counsel for the plaintiffs. “Equally important, the agreement ensures crucial cooperation that will assist victims in obtaining additional monetary relief from other financial institutions that took advantage of their clients.”

Remaining defendants in the foreign exchange antitrust litigation include Barclays, BNP Paribas Group, Citigroup, Credit Suisse Group AG, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, Morgan Stanley, and Royal Bank of Scotland PLC. The litigation alleges that since 2003, the financial institutions have conspired to manipulate the WM/Reuters Closing Spot Rates in the $5.4 trillion-per-day foreign exchange market.

Scott+Scott’s main business is prosecuting high-stakes antitrust and securities lawsuits throughout the United States on behalf of institutional investors, businesses, and corporations.

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