Bank of America triples Q3 loss on forex legal costs

[NEW YORK] Bank of America on Thursday said its third-quarter net loss was more than three times bigger than reported last month, due to higher legal costs from probes into foreign exchange manipulation.

The second-largest US bank by assets announced after the markets closed that it was adjusting its third-quarter results to include an additional US$400 million charge related to US investigations into its forex business.

Bank of America posted a net loss of US$70 million, or one cent per share for the July-September quarter on October 15. Now, it said in a statement, the net loss is US$232 million, or four cents per share.

The bank said that after it posted its results it had been in "separate advanced discussions with certain US banking regulatory agencies to resolve matters related to its foreign exchange business." As a result of those discussions, the company said, it took a US$400 million charge and adjusted its financial results.

"There can be no assurance as to the ultimate outcome of these matters." In the October report the bank also took a US$5.3 billion charge following a record mortgage-securities settlement with the US Department of Justice in August.

BofA paid US$16.7 billion to settle the department's claims it sold risky mortgage securities as safe investments ahead of the 2008 financial crisis.

Shares in Bank of America fell 0.5 per cent to US$17.27 in after-market trade.

AFP