Citigroup cuts $600m from Q3 profits for legal costs

Citigroup Thursday slashed its third-quarter earnings by $600 million due to higher legal costs, citing "rapidly-evolving" regulatory probes expected to result in more large settlements.
Citi, which bested analyst forecasts with its October 14 earnings report, lowered quarterly net income to $2.8 billion from the originally reported $3.4 billion due to the additional charge.
The $600 million is on top of the $951 million in legal expenses previously reported, which itself was an increase from $677 million in the year-ago period.
Citigroup is part of a group of large banks nearing a settlement with British regulators over rigging interest rates and manipulating the foreign exchange market, sources familiar with the matter have told AFP.
Thursday marks the second time this year that Citigroup has restated its earnings after the original announcement.
In February, Citi trimmed $235 million from its first quarter earnings after it learned of fraud in a Mexican subsidiary.
The Mexican unit, Banco Nacional de Mexico unit, or Banamex, had extended $585 million in short-term credit to a Mexican oil services company only to discover what it said was significant fraud on the company's books.