NEW YORK (AA) – Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse agreed to pay a combined $12.5 billion to settle investigations into their mortgage practices in the U.S. that lead to the 2008 financial crisis, the banks said Friday.
Deutsche Bank will pay $7.2 billion, of which will be $3.1 billion in civil penalties and $4.1 billion for relief to consumers.
The German giant were in talks with the Justice Department to pay approximately $14 billion but will pay just half of that amount. The current settlement is viewed as a major victory for the bank, according to analysts, as its shares rose around 0.2 percent on the U.S. stock market after the settlement was announced.
Suisse Group agreed to pay $5.3 billion -- $2.5 billion in penalties and $2.8 billion for consumer relief.
Some of the settlement will be reflected in the bank's fourth quarter earnings, the Swiss financial services company noted in its statement.
The bank's stock price increased 0.7 percent on the U.S. stock market following news of the settlement.
Since 2012, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Citibank and Goldman Sachs have paid more than $40 billion for related activities leading to the recession.
Most recently, Wells Fargo agreed to pay $1.2 billion for improper mortgage lending practices.
The Justice Department said Thursday it has opened a similar probe of British banking giant Barclays.
The Royal Bank of Scotland has not yet reached an agreement with the U.S.