Deutsche Bank Wants Lowering of US-Proposed Settlement in Mortgage Probe

Deutsche Bank considers $2-3 billion as a reasonable amount to settle the potential civil claims of the US Department of Justice (DOJ), which has proposed a $14 billion payment, The Wall Street Journal reports.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Deutsche Bank said on Thursday that it had started negotiations with the DOJ, seeking to settle civil claims that the department could consider in connection with the bank’s issuance and underwriting of residential mortgage-backed securities. The bank confirmed that the DOJ’s initial settlement proposal was $14 billion.

The Wall Street Journal reported citing Deutsche Bank lawyers and other anonymous sources on Thursday that the bank will likely push back against the DOJ proposal as it considers a sum of only about $2-3 billion as "reasonable."

According to some sources, the Deutsche Bank already paid $1.9 billion in 2013 to settle some US claims related to mortgaged-backed securities.

Several major US banks have paid large settlements for allegedly providing misleading information to investors on the securities. In 2014, Bank of America Corp. paid $16.65 billion to settle such claims.