Deutsche Bank AG agreed to pay $25 million as part of its settlement in the so-called MegaClaims litigation, in which creditors of Enron sued numerous banks for contributing to the company’s demise.
In addition, Deutsche Bank entities will receive about $35 million for their remaining interests in three complex transactions, allowing Enron Creditors Recovery Corp. to dissolve them and distribute the proceeds, expected to be more than $100 million.
The German bank also agreed to forego $416 million in claims against the Enron Estate.
Enron Creditors Recovery Corp. said the low $25 million cash-settlement figure reflects that Deutsche Bank was involved in fewer transactions with Enron than other MegaClaims defendants. Many of them agreed to pay far more; JPMorgan Chase tops the list at $982 million.
Under the settlement Deutsche Bank did not admit liability or wrongdoing.
As a result of the Deutsche deal, 10 of the 11 MegaClaims defendants have now settled their claims with Enron Creditors Recovery Corp.
The MegaClaims trial with Citigroup, the sole remaining defendant, is set to begin in April. “Our attention is now squarely focused on the multibillion-dollar suit against Citigroup, to which we have dedicated the necessary resources to ensure the causes of the Enron collapse are brought to light,” said John Ray III, Enron Creditors Recovery Corp. chairman and president.