Washington Treasurer James McIntire Tuesday announced a settlement agreement with State Street Bank that calls for it to pay $11.7 million to the state’s pension systems.
The negotiated resolution stems from a contract dispute over the pricing of foreign exchange transactions executed between 1997 and 2007, while State Street was the custody bank for the Washington State Investment Board.
The proceeds of the settlement will go into the state’s commingled trust fund that is managed by the board. The $53 billion fund represents the bulk of pension fund savings and investment earnings that are used to fund the state’s obligation for future benefit payments.
“The Investment Board has a fiduciary responsibility to make sure that every dollar in the CTF and other public trust funds that we manage are accounted for and protected,” said McIntire, a member of the board.
The attorney general’s office was also involved in the negotiations.
“The Washington State Investment Board, Treasurer McIntire, and the assistant attorneys general who negotiated this settlement should be commended for their commitment to our state’s retirees,” said Attorney General Rob McKenna.
Last year, California Attorney General Jerry Brown filed a lawsuit against State Street Bank alleging that it overcharged California’s two large employee pension systems for foreign currency trades.
