General Electric in $1.5 billion US settlement

The Justice Department announced Friday that General Electric has agreed to pay $1.5 billion over subprime mortgages, finalizing a settlement on conduct prior to the 2008 financial crisis. GE had announced a preliminary agreement on the subprime case in January, but the Department of Justice (DOJ) said the matter was now resolved.
The alleged violation came from subprime residential mortgage originator WMC, which GE acquired in 2004 and which went on to originate more than $65 billion in mortgages between 2005 and 2007, the DOJ said. These mortgages, later bought by investment banks and repackaged, in many cases were approved despite not meeting criteria as WMC sought to boost loan volume, said the DOJ.
WMC's statements were reviewed or made with knowledge of people from GE, the DOJ said. US officials have cracked down on numerous banks and other financial players over similar allegations tied to subprime mortgages since 2008.