HSBC, Nomura Lose Bid to Block U.S. Regulator Lawsuits
HSBC Holdings Plc (HSBA) and Nomura Holdings Inc. (8604) lost a bid to block claims by a U.S. regulator the banks say were brought too late, clearing the way for a trial of HSBC over questionable mortgage practices.
U.S. District Judge Denise Cote today reaffirmed earlier rulings that claims by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which sued the banks over residential mortgage-backed securities sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, aren’t barred by laws limiting the time in which suits must be filed.
The ruling allows the FHFA to go forward with a trial next month in which HSBC could be found liable for as much as $1.6 billion, according to the bank. It also puts added pressure on HSBC to settle. Nomura’s trial is scheduled for next year.
FHFA sued 18 banks in 2011 over losses to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on securities backed by risky mortgages. All but three of the banks — HSBC, Nomura and Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc — have settled. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) last week agreed to pay $3.15 billion to buy back mortgage-backed securities to settle FHFA claims against it. Goldman Sachs was also scheduled to begin trial next month.
Robert Sherman, a spokesman for London-based HSBC, and Jonathan Hodgkinson, a spokesman for Chuo-Ku, Japan-based Nomura, declined to comment on the ruling.
Source: bloomberg
