The White House moved to clarify comments from President Barack Obama in an article by Bloomberg BusinessWeek that appeared to take a more conciliatory stance toward the financial sector. The article quoted Obama as saying that he did not “begrudge people success or wealth,” and comparing Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, and Lloyd Blankfein, who heads up Goldman Sachs, with athletes who are paid even more. (New York Times)
Juniper Networks agreed to pay $169 million to settle a shareholder suit filed by New York City pension funds and other investors over allegedly backdated stock options. Juniper said the agreement to end the case against the company and its current and former officers and directors “remains subject to various conditions,” including final court approval. “This litigation arose from events that occurred more than six years ago relating to the granting of stock options to employees generally,” Juniper’s general counsel said. “Those practices have long been eliminated and new controls put in place.” (Bloomberg)
The Chinese government indicted four employees of Rio Tinto Group on trade secrets and bribery charges. The proceedings will not be made public because they concern commercial secrets, according to an attorney for one of the accused. The four “acted properly and ethically” the company said after they were formally arrested in August. “We are very concerned about the nature of these charges, however as it is part of an ongoing legal process, it is inappropriate to comment any further,” said Sam Walsh, the CEO of Rio’s iron ore unit. (Bloomberg)
U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the world’s leading economies were close to agreeing a global bank tax. His administration hopes to conclude a deal at the G-20 summit in June. Brown said opinion has shifted in favor of a globally coordinated tax after President Barack Obama’s move last month to raise $90 billion from a U.S. bank levy. (Financial Times)