NEW YORK: Credit Suisse is paying $5.3 billion to settle claims that it misled investors about the quality of mortgage-backed securities that it sold in the lead-up to the 2008 financial crisis.

In the agreement with the Department of Justice, the Swiss bank acknowledged that it knew the mortgages it packaged and then sold as securities did not meet underwriting standards.

Some Credit Suisse employees referred to the mortgages as “bad loans” and “complete garbage,” accord­­­ing to the Justice Department.

“Today’s settlement underscores that the Department of Justice will hold accountable the institutions responsible for the financial crisis of 2008,” said Attorney General Loretta Lynch, in a statement Wednesday.

Published in Dawn January 24th, 2017