JPMorgan Says London Whale Didn't Cause Fall Of Lehman

The former JPMorgan trader known as the 'London Whale' was not responsible for Lehman Brothers' bankruptcy and should not be dragged into an $8.6bn lawsuit accusing the largest U.S. bank of causing it, JPMorgan said.

Reuters reports that in a filing last week in Manhattan bankruptcy court, JPMorgan said Lehman knew from documents it produced itself that the trader, Bruno Iksil, had nothing to do with allegedly mismarked derivative trades about which Lehman wanted to take his deposition.

JPMorgan also said Lehman and its unsecured creditors committee, which also seeks Iksil's testimony, had pointed to nothing that shows the bank's Chief Investment Office had any role in the collateral requests at the center of Lehman's 3-year-old lawsuit.

In the meantime, Bloomberg reports that JPMorgan’s traders lost money on two days during the fourth quarter, down from 10 in the prior three months, as the bank stabilized the wrong-way bet London Whale credit derivatives loss.

Losses occurred on 41 days in 2012, compared with 27 days in the prior year, New York-based JPMorgan said in a securities filing last week. The firm made money on 220 out of 261 trading days, earning more than $200m on eight days, the bank said.

JPMorgan says London Whale didn't cause Lehman bankruptcy

JPMorgan Traders Lost on 41 Days as ‘London Whale’ Unwinds