A lawsuit filed this week by The Fire and Police Pension Association of Colorado alleges that Canada’s six biggest banks and three foreign lenders conspired to manipulate a key Canadian benchmark rate, CDOR (Canadian Dealer Offered Rate), to extract “illegitimate profits” on derivatives trades for several years until 2014. The alleged violations, including conspiracy under the U.S. Sherman Act and manipulation of the Commodity Exchange Act, took place for almost seven years, according to the filing. See: Six Canada banks accused of manipulating derivatives benchmark.
The victims here? Working stiffs–front line emergency workers–pension beneficiaries whose trust funds received less interest than was due, or paid more interest than was owed, on derivative trades based on CDOR. On top of chronic under-funding and under-saving, a key reason retirement funds today are deficit all around the world, is that the finance sector is run by wolves who are allowed to abuse positions of trust and enrich themselves at the expense of the masses. They are still getting away with it everyday.
The below discussion about similar activity by Goldman Sachs and other US banks stealing funds from their clients to enrich themselves, is worthwhile. No meaningful improvements in accountability and the solvency of society will happen until financial actors are held to a fiduciary duty, stripped off their proceeds of crime, and given jail time. Not there yet. I think it will happen, once the extent of the losses and deficits are revealed once more, in the next financial crisis.
Via America’s Lawyer: Mike Papantonio talks with Danielle DiMartino Booth about how a new federal lawsuit says Goldman Sachs and other Wall Street banks rigged the U.S Treasury Bond Market to gain profits for themselves. Here is a direct video link.
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