The U.S. Department of Justice collected a record $24.7 billion in penalties from fraud and other cases in fiscal year 2014, the agency said on Wednesday, as fines against banks for financial misconduct soared. Collections from civil and criminal actions, including money collected on behalf of other agencies, was $8 billion in 2013, and $13 billion in 2012.
Collections in 2014 were boosted by multi-billion dollar payouts from JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and Citigroup Inc (C.N) to resolve claims they misled investors about the quality of mortgage bonds in the run up to the financial crisis, and include $11 billion in payments made to federal agencies or states.
Payouts in fiscal year 2014, which ended Sept. 30, also include hundreds of millions of dollars in fines levied on UBS AG (UBSN.VX) and Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBS.L).
"It shows the fruits of the Justice Department's tireless work in enforcing federal laws ... and in holding financial institutions accountable for their roles in causing the 2008 financial crisis," Attorney General Eric Holder said in announcing the total collections.
