BankAtlantic Liable for Stock Fraud, Jury Concludes
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BankAtlantic Bancorp Inc. executives misled shareholders about the riskiness of the bank’s real- estate-loan portfolio during 2007’s economic decline, a Miami jury ruled in a stock-fraud case filed by investors.
Jurors in federal court deliberated about three days before finding today that BankAtlantic officials ignored lending guidelines in approving land-development loans and then misrepresented problems with those deals in press conferences and conference calls. The panel said BankAtlantic should pay $2.41 a share in damages to investors, who sought up to $3.52.