We're 40% of the way to our goal of 2,500 donations by midnight! Help us catch up ⏩ Give Now

Bank of America settles $2.4 billion lawsuit

Marketplace Contributor Sep 28, 2012
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Bank of America settles $2.4 billion lawsuit

Marketplace Contributor Sep 28, 2012
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Shortly before markets opened this morning, we got news that Bank of America will pay $2.4 billion to shareholders as part of a settlement announced this morning.

It’s compensation for maybe not sharing the whole story when B of A bought the failing brokerage Merrill Lynch in 2008. The bank admits no wrong-doing. But the evidence suggested managers knew Merrill was going to be a drag.

“When it bought Merrill Lynch, it didn’t reveal to shareholders that Merrill Lynch might have around $70 billion of losses on its books,” says New York bureau chief Heidi Moore. “And obviously those shareholders got really mad.”

Bank of America shares are down today on news of the settlement.

 

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.