By Paul Gable
SC Treasurer Curtis Loftis told fellow members of the S.C. Retirement System Investment Commission Thursday that a lawsuit with Bank of New York Mellon Corp. regarding the SC pension fund had been settled.
The lawsuit dated back to 2009 when the state alleged the bank had lost $200 million of state pension funds through bad investments associated with the financial meltdown of 2008-09. The suit was run through the SC Treasurer’s office beginning with Loftis’ predecessor Converse Chellis.
Loftis declined to discuss details of the settlement with the commission until all settlement provisions are completed, according to provisions of the settlement.
However, the AP reported, through information learned with a Freedom of Information request, the total settlement is for $34 million with $9 million going to the lawyers, $5 million to the Treasurer’s office and $20 million to the retirees’ pension fund.
According to the AP, the settlement awards Bank of New York Mellon Corp. a new contract as the holding bank and securities investor of state assets, a position the bank has held since at least 2000. This will keep approximately $40 billion in state assets in the bank, but guarantees the state will benefit from reduced fees.
Loftis called the settlement “comprehensive, equitable and beneficial to the state.”
Click here to read Loftis’ full statement: http://www.treasurer.sc.gov/Documents/settlementstmt5-23-13.pdf
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