Six banks, including Bank of America and Citigroup, agreed to pay $80 million to settle antitrust litigation in New York over allegations of conspiring to rig European government bond prices. The preliminary settlement also involves Jefferies, NatWest, Nomura, and UBS, and requires a judge’s approval.
Investors, led by three public pension funds, accused the banks of colluding from 2007 to 2012 to bid high prices at bond auctions to secure a dominant market share and then sell the bonds at inflated prices to various investors. All six banks denied wrongdoing in the settlement.
With Friday’s settlements, the litigation would conclude with a total of $120 million in settlements. JPMorgan Chase, Natixis, State Street, and UniCredit previously settled for a combined $40 million. This case is part of over a decade of litigation accusing banks of collusion in various markets.