BNP Paribas USA Inc., a subsidiary of BNP Paribas S.A., pleaded guilty yesterday to participating in a price-fixing conspiracy in the foreign currency exchange (FX) market, the Justice Department announced.
According to the one-count information filed yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, between September 2011 and July 2013, BNP Paribas USA conspired to suppress and eliminate competition by fixing prices in Central and Eastern European, Middle Eastern and African (CEEMEA) currencies, in violation of the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1.
The conspiracy involved manipulation of prices on an electronic FX trading platform through the creation of non-bona fide trades, coordination of bids and offers on that platform and agreements on currency prices to quote specific customers, among other conduct.
“The Antitrust Division is committed to uncovering and prosecuting wrongdoing in all corners of the foreign currency exchange market, including this conspiracy affecting multiple emerging market currencies,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division.
“This guilty plea holds BNP Paribas accountable for its corrupt price-fixing behavior which violated the integrity of the financial services industry and undermined competition,” said FDIC Inspector General Jay N. Lerner.
As part of its sentence, BNP Paribas USA has agreed to pay a criminal fine of $90 million. Both the government and BNP Paribas USA have agreed to recommend no probation, in light of, among other factors, the bank’s substantial efforts relating to compliance and remediation.
BNP Paribas USA also has agreed to cooperate with the government’s ongoing criminal investigation into the FX market, and to report relevant information to the government.
BNP Paribas USA’s guilty plea follows the Jan. 4, 2017 guilty plea of its former CEEMEA trader Jason Katz, and the Jan. 12, 2017 guilty plea of a former CEEMEA trader from another financial institution, Christopher Cummins.
BNP Paribas USA is the sixth major bank to plead guilty as a result of the department’s ongoing investigation into antitrust and fraud crimes in the FX market.
Mandatory Facts:
Defendant/Respondent: BNP Paribas USA Inc.
Criminal Charges: Participating in a price-fixing conspiracy in the foreign currency exchange market.
City and State: New York
Exact Date: [No exact date mentioned]
Sentence or Outcome: Agreed to pay a criminal fine of $90 million and cooperate with the government’s ongoing criminal investigation.
Dollar Amounts: $90 million
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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