MetLife Says the SEC Won’t Seek Sanctions

MetLife Inc., the largest U.S. life insurer, said the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission decided not to recommend that enforcement action be taken against the company for false accounting in 2003.

The company fired four employees and corrected its second-quarter earnings in 2003 after disclosing that false accounting in its New England Financial unit inflated profit by $31 million.

Separately, MetLife said it received subpoenas from San Diego County and Florida regulators regarding probes of commissions paid to brokers and possible bid rigging with insurers.