US: Banks win Mexican Bond price-fixing suit dismissal

A US judge on Monday, September 30, dismissed a proposed class action lawsuit against several large banks for allegedly rigging the market for Mexican government bonds, according to Reuters.

JPMorgan Chase, HSBC, Citigroup, and Bank of America are among 10 financial companies that had been accused in the lawsuit of benefiting from manipulating the market for Mexican government bonds.

US District Judge Paul Oetken in Manhattan said in his opinion he was dismissing the lawsuit because the plaintiffs failed to allege a direct link between each defendant and a conspiracy. 

According to Reuters, Oetken said he never determined if there was a plausible existence of an antitrust conspiracy, but said the plaintiffs could try to amend their complaint. 

Todd Seaver, a lawyer for the pension funds, said his team was evaluating the ruling and had no further comment. 

The lawsuit followed an investigation announced by Mexico’s Federal Commission for Economic Competition (COFECE) in April 2017, into possible breaches of competition laws in the public debt market.

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