RBS IN $ 5.5B SETTLEMENT OVER U. S. MORTGAGES

Royal Bank of Scotland said Wednesday it has reached a $ 5.5 billion settlement in the U. S. over the misselling of mortgagebacked securities before the financial crisis — a key milestone in the institution’s efforts to put its past sins behind it. The deal with the Federal Housing Finance Agency — the conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — resolves claims regarding the issuance and underwriting of approximately $ 32 billion of residential mortgage- backed securities. The bank must still resolve outstanding civil and criminal claims with the Department of Justice. RBS CEO Ross McEwan characterized the settlement as a “stark reminder” of the heavy price British taxpayers and the bank itself paid for the global ambitions of the institution under disgraced former boss Fred Goodwin.