Loading ...Swiss regulator names seven banks in precious metals probe
ZURICH – Switzerland’s competition regulator identified seven banks that are being investigated as part of a probe into whether companies in Europe, the U.S. and Japan colluded to manipulate the prices of gold, silver and other precious metals.
UBS Group AG, Deutsche Bank AG, HSBC Holdings Plc, Barclays Plc, Morgan Stanley, Julius Baer Group Ltd. and a unit of Tokyo- based trading company Mitsui & Co. Ltd. are part of the probe, which was opened in February, the Competition Commission said in a statement Monday.
European Union antitrust regulators in August disclosed they are investigating precious-metals trading, specifically anti-competitive behavior in spot trading, following a U.S. probe that embroiled some of the same banks. UBS was ordered to give up 134 million Swiss francs ($137 million) in profit by the Swiss financial regulator last November after it found “serious misconduct” by the bank’s employees in foreign exchange and precious metals trading.
U.S. prosecutors have been examining whether at least 10 banks, including HSBC, Barclays, JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank manipulated prices of precious metals. The scrutiny follows international probes into the rigging of financial benchmarks for rates and currencies, which have yielded billions of dollars in fines.
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