By Liz Hoffman
Credit Suisse Group AG agreed to pay Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $10
million and provide $6.25 million in future advisory work for free
to settle allegations the bank made mathematical errors that helped
cause the natural-resources company to overpay for two
acquisitions.
The settlement, filed Monday in the Delaware Court of Chancery,
ends the latest legal tussle over Freeport's 2013 purchases of
McMoRan Exploration Co. and Plains Exploration & Production
Co., a pair of oil-and-gas producers whose acquisitions have been
questioned by investors. Freeport itself earlier this year settled
with shareholder plaintiffs, agreeing to pay $137.5 million into a
fund, much of which has been earmarked for a special dividend.
That settlement explicitly allowed shareholders to pursue claims
against the Swiss bank, which the plaintiffs say made errors that
inflated the value of McMoRan Exploration.
Credit Suisse "continues to vigorously deny" any allegations of
wrongdoing, according to the court filing. A Credit Suisse
spokeswoman declined to comment further.
Freeport bought the two companies for a combined $9 billion. The
deals made Freeport, historically a miner, into a large energy
producer ahead of the sharp recent decline in oil prices.
Write to Liz Hoffman at liz.hoffman@wsj.com
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