Staff Reports
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced a $68 million, 40-state settlement with UBS for “fraudulent conduct involving the manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate,” or LIBOR, according to a press release.
LIBOR is a benchmark interest rate that affects financial instruments worth trillions of dollars and has a far-reaching impact on global markets and consumers, the release explained.
Bondi was joined in the action by attorneys general from the other states. They allege that UBS misrepresented the integrity of the LIBOR benchmark by concealing, misrepresenting, and failing to disclose that UBS at times made false submissions to avoid negative publicity and protect the reputation of the bank.
As a result of its fraudulent conduct, UBS made millions in unjust gains when government entities entered into swaps and other financial instruments with UBS without knowing that UBS and other banks on the LIBOR-setting panel were manipulating their submissions, Bondi said.
Governmental entities with LIBOR-linked swaps and other LIBOR-linked financial instruments with UBS will be notified if they are eligible to receive a distribution from the settlement fund.
UBS is the fourth of several banks under investigation by the state attorneys general to resolve the claims against it.
With the UBS settlement, the states have collected $488 million in payments from the banks, almost all of which will be distributed to state and local government entities that have been harmed by these banks’ wrongful conduct.
Pursuant to the settlement agreement, UBS will continue to cooperate with the states’ ongoing investigation; such cooperation helps facilitate civil enforcement efforts, including the distribution of funds to victims of the offense.
To read the settlement, click here.
