JPMorgan, DoJ Strike 'Tentative' $13B Deal

Doesn't exempt bank from criminal prosecution
By Ruth Brown,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 19, 2013 3:37 PM CDT
JPMorgan, DoJ Strike 'Tentative' $13B Deal
Employees chat inside the lobby of JPMorgan Chase & Co. headquarters on Park Avenue in New York.   (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

JPMorgan Chase has reached a tentative $13 billion deal with the Department of Justice to settle its various civil investigations into the bank's mortgage-backed securities business, a sources tells the Wall Street Journal (and Reuters and Politico; apparently this meeting was leakier than a rowboat made of Swiss cheese). The negotiations had reportedly stalled because JPMorgan wanted a deal that would also end the criminal probe into its activities. But Eric Holder told its lawyers last night that it just wasn't going to happen, and the bank relented.

The deal also requires that JPMorgan cooperate with federal prosecutors in the criminal investigation. The settlement will include $9 billion in government penalties, and $4 billion for consumers, Politico reports. But it isn't a sure thing yet—some final details are still being hammered out. Once—and if—it's made official, this will be the largest settlement the US government has ever made with a single company, reports the Journal. (More JPMorgan Chase stories.)

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