JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), the biggest U.S. bank, was warned by federal energy-market regulators that its personnel and two subsidiaries may face claims stemming from a probe into bidding practices. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission staff told JPMorgan in March they may recommend the agency bring an enforcement case, the New York-based company said yesterday in a regulatory filing. Claims may include “alleged violations of FERC rules and the rules of certain independent system operators,” the lender said, without elaborating on the allegations. The FERC has stepped up scrutiny of corporations as it wields policing powers that were expanded in the wake of Enron Corp.’s 2001 collapse. Agency investigators may seek to hold JPMorgan traders and commodities-unit chief Blythe Masters “individually liable,” the New York Times reported last week, citing a 70-page document the watchdog sent the bank in March. More on Bloomberg BusinessWeek here.
