4 More Banks to Settle WorldCom Investor Suit

ABN Amro Inc. and three other former WorldCom Inc. banks agreed Wednesday to pay $428.4 million to settle an investor lawsuit claiming the banks should have known the company’s books were fraudulent when they underwrote its bonds.

Mitsubishi Securities International, BNP Paribas Securities Corp. and Mizuho International joined ABN in settling claims in the WorldCom investor class-action suit, scheduled for trial March 22 in federal court in New York.

New York Comptroller Alan Hevesi, trustee for the New York State Common Retirement Fund, the lead plaintiff in the case, announced the agreement. The accord brings to 10 the number of banks that have settled the class-action suit over their role in the sale of WorldCom bonds.

The deal adds pressure on remaining defendant banks, including J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Deutsche Bank, to reach settlements.

WorldCom emerged from bankruptcy last year as MCI Inc.