Dodgy mortgages: BofA agrees $17bn deal

WASHINGTON: Bank of America (BofA) agreed to a record nearly $17 billion deal with US authorities to settle claims it sold risky mortgage securities as safe investments ahead of the 2008 financial crisis.
The bank said it would pay out $9.65 billion in cash and provide $7.0 billion in relief to consumers affected by losses tied to those securities.
The settlement, with the US Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and other authorities including individual states, resolves a number of civil investigations against the bank and subsidiaries Countrywide Financial and Merrill Lynch, which it took over during the crisis.