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* Claims narrowed against ScotiaBank, HSBC
* Deutsche Bank settlement agreement expected soon
* Banks accused of suppressing, exploiting silver prices
By Jonathan Stempel
NEW YORK, Oct 5 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge has dismissed UBSGroup AG as a defendant in a lawsuit accusing big banksof conspiring to fix silver prices and exploit price distortionsat investors' expense.
In a decision made public on Tuesday, U.S. District JudgeValerie Caproni in Manhattan also said investors may pursue somebut not all antitrust and manipulation claims against Bank ofNova Scotia ("ScotiaBank") and HSBC Holdings Plc.
Deutsche Bank AG settled related claims in April,and the investors plan soon to seek preliminary approval of asettlement, their lawyer Vincent Briganti said on Wednesday. Terms have not been disclosed.
UBS spokeswoman Erica Chase said the Swiss bank is pleasedthe court accepted its arguments. Deutsche Bank spokeswomanAmanda Williams declined to comment. HSBC and ScotiaBank did notimmediately respond to requests for comment.
The lawsuit is one of many in the Manhattan court in whichinvestors have accused banks of conspiring to rig rates andprices in financial and commodities markets.
Investors claimed that Deutsche Bank, HSBC and ScotiaBankrigged silver prices through a secret daily meeting called theSilver Fix, and accused UBS of exploiting that fix.
The alleged conspiracy started by 1999, suppressed prices onroughly $30 billion of silver and silver financial instrumentstraded each year, and enabled the banks to pocket returns thatcould top 100 percent annualized, the investors said.
Caproni said the investors sufficiently, "albeit barely,"alleged that Deutsche Bank, HSBC and ScotiaBank violated U.S.antitrust law by conspiring opportunistically to depress theSilver Fix from January 2007 to December 2013.
But the judge also said dismissing UBS was appropriatebecause there was nothing showing it manipulated prices, even ifit benefited from distortions.
"At best, plaintiffs allege that UBS engaged in parallelconduct by offering (along with the fixing members) below-marketquotes," Caproni said in her 61-page decision.
Caproni gave the investors 14 days to amend their complaint,including against UBS. Briganti said they plan to do so.
The case is In re: London Silver Fixing Ltd AntitrustLitigation, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York,No. 14-md-02573. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by FrancesKerry)
