The US government on Wednesday approved a $5 billion settlement with two major banks for fraud claims stemming from the collapse of the financial market giant BlackRock Inc. (BLK.
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The Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General said the settlement was part of an ongoing investigation into whether the government’s top banking regulator was aware of the fraud allegations against BlackRock.
The Justice department announced the settlement in a news release.
The settlements came a week after the bank agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle allegations that it had manipulated benchmarks and the market for its mortgage-backed securities, the largest financial settlement in US history.
The department announced in May that the bank had agreed to a $2 billion fine and a $1 billion fine for similar misconduct.
The settlement, which included the payments from BlackRock, also included a $600 million civil penalty against the bank for failing to take reasonable steps to ensure compliance with laws and regulations, the department said.
BlackRock’s stock plunged by more than 7 percent in early trading Wednesday.
The company was already on track for a record $13 billion in quarterly revenue as it continues to pay back investors.
