JPMorgan Settles With Federal Authorities in Madoff Case(dealbook.nytimes.com)
dealbook.nytimes.com
JPMorgan Settles With Federal Authorities in Madoff Case
http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/01/07/jpmorgan-settles-with-federal-authorities-in-madoff-case
JPMorgan, having served as Mr. Madoff’s primary bank for more than two decades, had a unique window into his scheme. In a document outlining the bank’s wrongdoing, prosecutors argued that “the Madoff Ponzi scheme was conducted almost exclusively through” various accounts “held at JPMorgan.”
On two occasions, in 2007 and 2008, JPMorgan’s own computer system raised red flags about Mr. Madoff, according to prosecutors. But both times, prosecutors say, JPMorgan employees “closed the alerts.”
“JP Morgan failed to carry out its legal obligations while Bernard Madoff built his massive house of cards,” George Venizelos, a senior F.B.I. official, said in a statement.
The F.B.I. and prosecutors traced the problem to JPMorgan “willfully” failing to create sufficient controls against money laundering. “There was no meaningful effort by the Bank to examine or investigate the Madoff Securities banking relationship,” prosecutors said.
Any current or former JPM employees out there? Your comments will be especially, especially welcome.