The WSJ reports, "U.S. authorities are pushing BNP Paribas SA to pay more than $10 billion to end a criminal probe into allegations the bank evaded U.S. sanctions, according to people familiar with the negotiations, a sign of increasing pressure the government is putting on large financial firms it suspects of wrongdoing.
A settlement of $10 billion or more, along with the guilty plea prosecutors are also seeking, would eclipse the punishment inflicted on other banks for similar conduct. To date, the most severe penalty on a bank suspected of sanctions violations or money laundering has been a $1.9 billion settlement with HSBC Holdings PLC, which included an admission of wrongdoing but not a guilty plea.
The amount sought by the government would approach the largest penalty the U.S. has levied on a single bank: the $13 billion deal J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. struck last year to resolve a civil probe into its handling of mortgage securities, which it admitted misrepresenting to investors.
European banks have been the target of many of the recent U.S. fines. The pursuit, with cumulative penalties in the ballpark of $10 billion, has triggered private grumbling among European finance executives and some regulators there. The mounting frustration helps explain why some French leaders appear to be rallying around BNP. Christian Noyer, the governor of the Bank of France, said this month that BNP's alleged actions didn't violate European or French laws.
A final resolution of the yearslong U.S. investigation of the French bank is likely weeks away, and it is possible the ultimate settlement amount could total far less than $10 billion. BNP is looking to pay less than $8 billion, according to the people familiar with the settlement discussions, although a person close to the bank said its negotiators haven't mentioned the $8 billion figure in talks with U.S. authorities.
BNP and the U.S. authorities also are negotiating whether the bank will temporarily lose the ability to transfer money into and out of the U.S., the people said".
