According to a press release[1] issued on May 20th, 2021, the European Commission has found the following banks: Bank of America, Nomura, Natixis, NatWest (RBS), UBS, UniCredit and Portigon (WestLB) guilty of breaching EU antitrust laws through a cartel of group traders of European Government Bonds (EGB) dealing in the primary and secondary market.

Margrethe Vestager, the Executive Vice-President of the Commission has reportedly stated, “A well-functioning European government bonds market is paramount both for the Eurozone Member States issuing these bonds to generate liquidity and the investors buying and trading them. Our decision against Bank of America, Natixis, Nomura, RBS, UBS, UniCredit and WestLB sends a clear message that the Commission will not tolerate any kind of collusive behavior. It is unacceptable, that in the middle of the financial crisis these investment banks colluded in this market at the expense of EU Member States”.

The banks executed the cartel through a group of traders who regularly contacted each other, primarily through chat rooms on Bloomberg terminals, where they would exchange confidential information in the form of updates on the prices and volumes provided to their customers and during the build up to auctions. They would go further as to provide each other updates on their bidding strategy in the auctions of the issuance of Euro Denominated Bonds on the primary market and secondary market.

The behavior documented by the banks has violated EU laws that prohibit the anti-competitive practice of collusion on prices. This is further supported through Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Article 53 of the EEA Agreement.

The conduct took place between 2007 and 2011, negatively affecting the entire European Economic Area (“EEA”). As a consequence, the European Commission has implemented pecuniary fines on the following banks: Nomura (€129 million), UBS (€172 million) and Unicredit (€69 million).

The European Commission has further stated, “any person or company affected by anti-competitive behavior may bring the matter before the courts of the Member States to seek damages. The case law of the Court and Council Regulation 1/2003 both confirm that in cases before national courts, a Commission decision constitutes binding proof that the behavior took place and was illegal. Even though the Commission has fined the cartel participants concerned, damages may be awarded without being reduced on account of the Commission fine”.

[1] https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_21_2565

Our Proposal

Martingale Risk will file a collective lawsuit as well as individual suits on the behalf of investors who purchased the EGB bonds through Bank of America, Nomura, Natixis, NatWest (RBS), UBS, UniCredit and Portigon (WestLB) on the primary and/or secondary market from September 4th, 2007 to November 28th, 2011.

The lawsuit is directed at obtaining a repayment of the damages incurred between 2007 - 2011. The investors eligible to seek damages could be both institutions as well as individuals. If you are interested in participating in the collective action or forming an individual action against any of the above mentioned banks, please send us your trading data between September 4th, 2007 and November 28th, 2011 in Excel. Martingale Risk will perform a free preliminary analysis on your trading data to determine if you are eligible for reimbursement.

Terms and Conditions

1. Compensation: Martingale Risk will collect a Success Fee equal plus VAT calculated on the Losses Recovered from Bank of America, Nomura, Natixis, NatWest (RBS), UBS, UniCredit and Portigon (WestLB) ("Counterparty"), as resulting from: (a) the conclusion of a settlement agreement with the Counter Party in the Negotiation or Litigation phase; (b) the issuance of a definitive successful court trial.

2. Expenses: Martingale Risk will pay all administrative and tax expenses incurred in the Litigation, such as: notification and registration expenses for documents filed to the Court and any administrative expenses and fees related to the experts eventually engaged by the Court. Martingale Risk will be liable to pay the legal adverse costs in case of an unsuccessful lawsuit.

3. Representation: The Client will sign a mandate providing Martingale Risk with Power of Attorney which includes the power to take every decision concerning the lawsuit, including the power to settle, to collect, and dispersed the recovered amount from the Counter Party until the issuance of a definitive decision. The Client will also sign a Power of Attorney to the lawyer (s) directly involved in the litigation.

DISCLAIMER: THESE TERMS ARE INDICATIVE AND NON-BINDING AND CAN BE SUBJECT TO CHANGES PRIOR TO THE SIGNING OF THE MANDATE, GIVEN THE RESULTS OF THE PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS AND PRELIMINARY LEGAL OPINION. MARTINGALE RISK WILL RESERVE ALL THE RIGHTS TO DECLINE THE DEFENSE OF EACH CLIENT THAT IS DEEMED UNSUITABLE TO THE LAWSUIT. ALL DISPUTES RELATED TO THE INTERPRETATION OF THE MANDATE WILL BE REGULATED BY THE INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (ICC).

Open Case:

EGB Trading Cartel (Antitrust)