Goldman, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, UBS in $499 million stock lending settlement

By Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:), Morgan Stanley and UBS have agreed to pay $499 million to settle an antitrust lawsuit by investors who accused them of conspiring to stifle competition in the stock lending market.

The settlement was disclosed on Wednesday in a filing in Manhattan federal court, and requires a judge’s approval. It also covers EquiLend, a joint venture among the defendants.

Investors have reached $580 million of settlements with five banks, including an $81 million accord in Feb. 2022 with Credit Suisse, which UBS bought in June.

As part of the settlement, they agreed to cooperate in the investors’ case against the final defendant, Bank of America (NYSE:).

Spokespeople for Bank of America and UBS declined to comment. The other banks did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Investors accused the banks of having conspired since 2009 to relegate the stock lending market to “the stone age” by boycotting startup platforms.

They said the banks did this by using their positions on EquiLend’s board to maintain monopoly control over the market, and charge excessive fees to investors.

The lawsuit began in Aug. 2017.