Govt can sue French bank over 'mis-selling' to Northern Rock

The government has been told it can sue French banking giant Societe Generale for allegedly mis-selling financial products to Northern Rock that were partly to blame for UK lender's collapse.

The highest court in New York has ruled that Northern Rock Asset Management (NRAM), the UK taxpayer-owned institution salvaged from the ashes of the collapsed bank, should be allowed to take legal action against SocGen for mis-selling $34m of mortgage products in the run-up to the financial crisis. The ruling is expected to pave the way for a flurry of similar lawsuits. SocGen has tried to have the case thrown out of court on the grounds that it warned Northern Rock in its small print that it could not be held accountable for many of the statements in its marketing material, the Teleg...