In other words, it sure looks like this already massive financial company wanted to become massive on a galactic scale by capturing the market on gold and other precious metals, as well as paper assets — meaning, of course, that this one company could have, theoretically, amassed enough wealth and power to control money, period.
That’s scary and, as it turns out, expensive: The settlement payment is nearly a billion dollars.
The Justice Department adds:
JPMorgan entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) in connection with a criminal information filed today in the District of Connecticut charging the company with two counts of wire fraud.
Under the terms of the DPA, JPMorgan will pay over $920 million in a criminal monetary penalty, criminal disgorgement, and victim compensation, with the criminal monetary penalty credited against payments made to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) under a separate agreement with the CFTC being announced today and with part of the criminal disgorgement credited against payments made to the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) under a separate agreement with the SEC being announced today.
And by the way, this scheme to defraud didn’t just happen; it’s been in the works for a while, according to Justice Department officials.
“For nearly a decade, a significant number of JP Morgan traders and sales personnel openly disregarded U.S. laws that serve to protect against illegal activity in the marketplace,†said Assistant Director in Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. of the FBI’s New York Field Office. “Today’s deferred prosecution agreement, in which JP Morgan Chase and Co. agreed to pay nearly one billion dollars in penalties and victim compensation, is a stark reminder to others that allegations of this nature will be aggressively investigated and pursued.â€
Other officials chimed in as well.
“For over eight years, traders on JP Morgan’s precious metals and U.S. Treasuries desks engaged in separate schemes to defraud other market participants that involved thousands of instances of unlawful trading meant to enhance profits and avoid losses,†said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
www.newstarget.com/2020-10-12-doj-busted-jpmorgan-chase-1-billion-fine-rigging-gold-markets.html