Citigroup is agreeing to pay $100 million to settle charges that its bankers manipulated an important interest rate used to price everything from credit cards to mortgages.
It is the latest bank to settle charges related to the manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate, better known as Libor.
Citi will pay $100 million to the New York State Attorney General's office and 41 other states involved with the investigation, New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said Friday.
Citi had paid $95 million to European Union authorities back in 2013 over its role in Libor manipulation. The bank said in a statement that Friday's settlement "represents another significant step for Citi in resolving its legacy interbank offered rate litigation."
Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt said in a statement:
“This settlement with Citibank confirms that the State of Nevada continues to police the conduct of the largest players in our nation’s financial markets, and that we will take action where unacceptable anticompetitive and fraudulent conduct occurs,” said Laxalt. “Government entities and not-for-profit organizations across the nation have been defrauded of millions of dollars by unknowingly entering into financial arrangements with Citibank and other banks, and with today’s settlement, my fellow attorneys general and I hope to send a strong message of deterrence.”
This is the third bank that settled with state attorneys general for illegally influencing the Libor. Barclays, Deutsche Bank and now Citibank have been fined $420 million collectively.
In addition to Nevada, participants in the settlement include: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
