Thread: Bank of America to pay $26m in SEC settlement

Bank of America to pay $26m in SEC settlement

Bank of America Wednesday agreed to pay $26m to settle US Securities and Exchange Commission char*ges that it issued false equity research and allowed its traders access to research reports before they were released to customers, Reuters reports from Washington.

The penalty includes $16m of civil fines and $10m of disgorgement.

The second-largest US bank also agreed to hire a consultant to review its internal controls and stop further leaks of research reports. "We are determined to plug an improper leak of information on Wall Street," said Linda Thomson, director of the SEC's enforcement division, in a statement Wednesday.

Bank of America did not immediately return a call seeking comment. The bank, based in Charlotte, North Carolina, did not admit wrongdoing.

According to the SEC, Banc of America Securities LLC from January 1999 to December 2001 failed to detect and prevent employees' misuse of forthcoming research reports.

In at least two cases, traders took positions in securities before releasing the research to clients.

The agency also said Bank of America failed to address conflicts of interest that compromised analysts' independence.

It said this led to false and misleading research on Intel Corp, E-Stamp Corp and TelCom Semiconductor.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17618825/

The penalty includes $16m of civil fines and $10m of disgorgement.

Too bad that $26 million will disappear into the black hole of government and it's bureaucracy.....just a cost of "doing business (ILLEGALLY) for Bank of "America"!

May misfortune continue to rain down on Bank of America due to its corruption and greed.