Judge Marrero of the Southern District of New York preliminarily approved a $100 million class settlement on Thursday, and scheduled a hearing on July 8, 2016 to determine whether the settlements should be approved as fair. Objections will be entertained no later than 20 days before the hearing.
The proposed settlement concerns six investment banks, including UBS, Natixis, and Societe Generale, and would resolve all remaining claims in the seven-year-old multidistrict litigation over an alleged unlawful conspiracy on the part of more than forty corporate defendants and others to illegally rig bids, limit competition, and fix prices in the municipal derivatives market.
Class plaintiffs allege that they, and members of the class, “received lesser interest rates on municipal derivatives than they would have received in a competitive marketplace, unfettered by collusive and unlawful activities.” The class previously settled claims against Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, Wachovia, Bank of America and GE for $125 million, collectively.