HSBC Holdings PLC (LON:HSBA), Citigroup Inc, (NYSE:C) and Deutsche Bank AG have agreed to pay a combined US$132mln to settle a US class action brought by futures traders accusing them of manipulating the Libor benchmark interest rate, according to a Reuters report.
The news agency said HSBC, Citi, and Deutsche Bank have agreed to each pay US$33.4mln, US$80mln,and US$18.5mln respectively, according to a filing in the Manhattan federal court.
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The money will go to proposed classes consisting of anyone who traded in Eurodollar futures on exchanges, including but not limited to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, between 1 January 2003 and 31 May 2011, according to the filing.
"We are pleased the matter is resolved," HSBC spokesman Rob Sherman told Reuters.
Banks use Libor, or the London Interbank Offered Rate, to set rates on hundreds of trillions of dollars of credit card, mortgage, student loan and other transactions, and to determine the cost of borrowing from one another.
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The futures traders' lawsuit is among many brought by various investors in Manhattan court accusing banks of colluding to rig rates or prices in various financial and commodities markets.