Major Banking Institutions Accused of Bond-Rigging in the Market
The European Commission has accused four major banks, including Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank, of price-rigging in the credit market. The Commission alleges that the banks rigged prices for certain US dollar-denominated government bonds. Its preliminary view is that the four banks have breached the EU’s antitrust rules insofar as they co-ordinated on prices and shared commercially sensitive information on market prices for supranational, sub-sovereign and agency debts. It is suggested that the activity took place in the secondary market from 2009 to 2015.
In response, Deutsche Bank has confirmed that it is cooperating with the European Commission and as a result has been granted immunity. It does not expect to pay a penalty, which suggests it may have acted as whistleblower. The banks are able to examine the commission’s evidence, present comments and request a hearing before the Commission makes a final decision on the case. There is no deadline by which the Commission must complete its investigation.