Fine Predicament: Bank Penalties, Settlements in 2015 (So Far)
June 11, 2015 11:00 AM
Banks have agreed to dole out billions of dollars in fines and settlements this year, on everything from rigging foreign-currency markets to processing transactions for groups suspected of terrorism. We catch you up if you've lost track.
Forex Woes
Six banks have agreed to pay almost $6 billion to settle allegations that they rigged foreign-currency markets-Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, UBS and Bank of America. In addition, JPMorgan said it had to plead guilty to an antitrust charge to resolve the matter.
Swiss Miss
Credit Suisse last month became the largest bank to plead guilty to a U.S. criminal charge in 20 years when it admitted to committing tax fraud. Although the Swiss bank pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $2.6 billion to settle tax fraud charges, there is still concern in some eyes that the "Too Big to Jail" concept lives on.
Parting Act
In one of his final acts before leaving office, New York Superintendent of Financial Services Benjamin Lawsky fined German company Commerzbank $1.45 billion for violating terrorism sanctions and facilitating payments for a company accused of accounting fraud.
A Derivative Tale
Deutsche Bank was ordered to pay $55 million to settle an investigation into claims that it misrepresented the value of derivatives during the financial crisis. A federal regulator said the German bank's financial statements "did not reflect the significant risk in these large, complex illiquid positions."
Ripple Effect
Ripple Labs was fined $700,000 by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network in May for failing to comply with anti-money-laundering laws. Ripple is developing products based on the blockchain technology that underlies Bitcoin.
More Mortgage Messes
Japan's Nomura and the U.K.'s Royal Bank of Scotland agreed to pay a combined $806 million in connection with claims they committed deceptions in the sale of mortgage-backed securities. Meanwhile, First Horizon National of Memphis agreed to pay about $213 million to settle claims for bad underwriting of mortgages.
Automated Credit?
PayPal agreed to pay $25 million to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to settle charges that it forced consumers to use its credit products. The CFPB alleged that PayPal, which will be spun off from eBay later this year, enrolled consumers automatically in its credit program without their knowledge.
Drawing the Line on Overdrafts
The Birmingham, Ala., company Regions Financial agreed to pay the CFPB $7.5 million to settle an investigation into charging illegal overdraft fees. The CFPB said Regions charged the fees to consumers who did not opt into the program, and committed other violations.
Discrimination Settlements
Two banks and a mortgage lender settled investigations into alleged racial discrimination. Associated Banc-Corp agreed to pay $25 million to settle a redlining case. Financial Institutions in Warsaw, N.Y., agreed to pay almost $1 million to settle charges it excluded minorities from its mortgage business. And mortgage lender Provident Funding agreed to pay $9 million on charges that its brokers charged higher fees to minorities.
Kickback Crackdowns
JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and a number of individuals got caught up in a mortgage kickback scheme involving a Maryland title company. The banks agreed to pay more than $35 million in fines and restitution. Meanwhile, the CFPB sued six individuals who were tied to the company, Genuine Title. Separately, the CFPB fined NewDay Financial $2 million for an improper kickback scheme.
