Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: Investors reach $60 million settlement with Deutsche Bank in price fixing suit, (Dec 5, 2016)

By Elizabeth C. Pope, J.D.

Investors alleging in a class action that several foreign financial services companies had colluded to manipulate the London Gold Market Fixing Ltd. price-setting process have reached a $60 million cash settlement with Deutsche Bank, one of the named defendants. The investors filed a motion for preliminary approval of the settlement agreement on December 2 in the federal district court in New York City. The parties had in April notified the court of their intent to settle (In re Commodity Exchange, Inc. Gold Futures and Options Trading Litigation, Case No. 14-md-2548).

Bank of Nova Scotia, Barclays Bank PLC, Deutsche Bank, AG, HSBC Holdings PLC, and Societe Generale N.A. are foreign commercial financial services companies that were members of the London Gold Market Fixing Ltd. ("Gold Fix"). In April 2014, investors who had traded physical gold and gold derivatives on an exchange in the United States filed suit against the financial institutions, alleging that they exploited the Gold Fix by conspiring to manipulate the price of gold and gold derivatives by exchanging trading information before publication of the Gold Fix to the wider market.

As detailed in the investors’ memorandum of law in support of their motion, in addition to the $60 million cash payment, Deutsche Bank has agreed to provide "significant cooperation" to the investors in pursuing their case against the remaining defendants. The investors in turn have agreed to release any claims against Deutsche Bank with respect to any gold investment transactions from January 1, 2004 to March 20, 2015, which is the date that a new gold price settling mechanism was launched to replace the Gold Fix.

The investors’ motion also asks the court to certify the settlement class and the escrow agent agreed upon by the parties to hold the cash settlement pending distribution to the class.

Attorneys: Christopher Lovell (Lovell Stewart Halebian Jacobson LLP) for Kevin Maher. Kenneth M. Raisler (Sullivan & Cromwell, LLP) for Bank of Nova Scotia. Michael Svetkey Feldberg (Allen & Overy, LLP) for Barclays Bank PLC. Amy Wilkie Ray (Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, LLP) for Deutsche Bank, AG.

Companies: Bank of Nova Scotia; Barclays Bank PLC; Deutsche Bank, AG; HSBC Holdings PLC

News: Antitrust NewYorkNews