Business
JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the US, has revealed it is under investigation over currency trading. The BBC writes:
The firm said the US Department of Justice (DoJ) had launched a criminal investigation, while other regulators are running civil investigations.
It added that possible losses from all its the legal proceedings could total $5.9bn (£3.7bn).
A number of other banks, including HSBC, RBS and Barclays, have recently set aside sums to cover similar probes.
Global lenders, such as Citigroup and UBS, are also being investigated over the alleged rigging of foreign-exchange rates.
JPMorgan Chase recently added $2.4 billion to its estimate of the amount of legal costs it may face, the latest sign that investigations into the possible manipulation of the currency market are gaining momentum. The New York Times' Dealbook blog reports:
The potential increase in legal costs was disclosed Monday in a securities filing in which the bank also formally acknowledged that it was facing a criminal investigation by the Justice Department into the behavior of traders in the foreign exchange market.
JPMorgan is among more than a dozen giant banks that have been caught up in inquiries in the United States and Britain looking at whether traders buying and selling currencies colluded with one another to set certain benchmark prices in the market.
Six banks — including JPMorgan — are expected to reach a settlement with British regulators this month.
