New York (HedgeCo.net) – In as settlement that defers criminal charges against JP Morgan until 2016, a US Judge has agreed to settle for a fine of $1.7 billion, Reuters reports.

JP Morgan was being charged by the prosecution for it’s involvement in the Bernard Madoff hedge fund ponzi scheme. The charges being settled are, according to Reuters, “..the bank violated anti-money laundering laws by failing to alert authorities to warning signs its employees encountered in dealings with convicted Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff.”

The prosecution says that JP Morgan cut its exposure to Madoff’s hedge fund at the time in order to minimize losses, however, the mega-bank never informed US authorities about what turned out to be a $17.3 billion Ponzi scheme.

“The agreement would be the second time in a month that JP Morgan has been forced to acknowledge wrongdoing,’ The Guardian reports, “On November 19 the bank paid a record $13 billion to settle charges that it routinely bundled poor quality home loans into securities that were billed as high-quality to investors.”

The charges can be dismissed if the mega-bank pays its due and meets all the terms of the agreement.

The bank will pay a total of $2.6 billion, settling all criminal, civil and regulatory actions related to its business with Madoff.

Alex Akesson
Editor for HedgeCo.net
alex@hedgeco.net
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