Guilty Banks Can Avoid Death Penalty
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Few things would be as surprising as the sight of JPMorgan Chase & Co. pleading guilty in a criminal case. Yet this could be a real possibility, if we are to believe recent news reports about the bank’s settlement negotiations with the Justice Department.
This week, for instance, the Wall Street Journal said JPMorgan may have to pay as much as $11 billion and plead guilty to a criminal charge to settle a Justice Department investigation of the bank’s sales of mortgage bonds several years ago. The markets’ reaction? Yawn.