US pension fund sues five banks over agency bond rigging claims

Washington

BANK of America Corp (BOA) and Deutsche Bank AG are among five banks being sued over claims that traders conspired to manipulate trading agency bonds issued by government entities and institutions such as the World Bank, harming investors who bought and sold the securities.

The suit by Boston Retirement System, a pension fund representing city workers, follows inquiries by US and UK authorities into the market for the debt, known as supranational, sub-sovereign and agency bonds, or SSAs. The probes target alleged illegal collusion in international trading and follow billions of dollars in settlements over claims that banks rigged interest-rate benchmarks and currency markets.