FDIC sues 16 Banks for rigging the Libor Rate
March 2014. New York Times.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) sued 16 banks for fraud because they conspired to set a crucial global interest rate low to enrich themselves. Many cities and municipal agencies in the United States have also filed suits,
The banks included some of the world’s biggest banks (i.e. Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase). Four of the banks, Britain’s Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland; Switzerland’s biggest bank, UBS; and Rabobank of the Netherlands, have paid about $2.6 billion to settle these charges.
The FDIC says that 10 banks they took over in the financial crisis failed due to this rate manipulation and the are suing to recover the losses they suffered.
The banks rigged the London interbank offered rate, known as Libor, from August 2007 to mid-2011 (or beyond).