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STMicroelectronics wins fraud case against Credit Suisse

Mar 24, 2010, 16:04 GMT

Geneva - STMicroelectronics, Europe's largest semiconductor maker, reported Wednesday it had won a legal battle against Credit Suisse over investment fraud.

But Switzerland's largest bank by market capitalization said it could appeal the ruling, which, if left standing, would see Credit Suisse pay out 354 million dollars.

The verdict was handed down last week by a federal district court in New York.

STMicroelectronics, based in Geneva, accused the bank, which it hired to manage its money, of making unauthorized investments in auction-rate securities.

Those securities, claimed to have been safe, lost value in February 2009 along with a market collapse, prompting the legal action by STMicroelectronics.

'We respectfully disagree with the court's decision and are evaluating an appeal,' said Alex Biscaro, a Credit Suisse spokesman in Zurich.

The ruling took into consideration the 75 million dollars the semiconductor maker earned off selling the securities.