JPMorgan Chase To Pay Nearly $1B In Record Spoofing Settlement

JPMorgan Chase admitted wrongdoing and agreed to pay more than US$920 million to resolve US authorities’ claims of market manipulation involving two of the bank’s trading desks, the largest sanction ever tied to the illegal practice known as spoofing, reported the Financial Times.

Over eight years, 15 traders at the biggest US bank caused losses of more than US$300 million to other participants in precious metals and Treasury markets, according to court filings on Tuesday, September 29.

JPMorgan admitted responsibility for the traders’ actions. The Justice Department filed two counts of wire fraud against the bank’s parent company but agreed to defer prosecution related to the charges, under a three-year deal that requires the bank to report its remediation and compliance efforts to the government.

The New York-based lender will pay the biggest monetary penalty ever imposed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), including a US$436.4 million fine, US$311.7 million in restitution, and more than US$172 million in disgorgement, according to a CFTC statement. The CFTC stated its order will recognize and offset restitution and disgorgement payments made to the Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission.

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