Attorney General Pam Bondi said Thursday that the state has filed a complaint alleging that Bank of New York Mellon overcharged the state retirement fund by millions of dollars on foreign currency exchanges.
The complaint, filed in circuit court in Leon County, alleges that the state essentially paid more to buy foreign currency than it should have, and that the bank also took a larger cut on sells than it was entitled to.
“Every penny that state and local employees entrust to Florida’s pension fund is hard-earned, and we will not allow Floridians’ money to be lost due to fraudulent activity,” Bondi said in a statement released by her office. “Overcharging for foreign exchange transactions is essentially stealing, and any company that does so will be held accountable.”
BNY Mellon vehemently denied the allegation.
“The lawsuit filed by the Florida attorney general is unwarranted and reflects a flawed understanding of foreign currency markets,” a statement released by the bank said. “We will fight these claims in court and are confident we will prevail. We value our client relationships and are always prepared to respond to our clients’ questions about the pricing of our service.”
A fact sheet about BNY Mellon’s foreign exchange services provided by the company notes that the bank publishes a guaranteed range of rates every day.
“Our clients and their investment managers can review these rates and opt out,” the fact sheet notes. It also says clients have access to daily reports that show the actual rates paid on transactions the day before, so they can compare that to what other providers of foreign exchange would have paid.
“We refuse to be coerced into paying for and admitting to wrongdoing where none exists,” BNY Mellon said in its statement.
