The SecuritiesandExchangeCommissionis looking into whetherAACapital, a buy-out fund spun out fromABN Amro, a Dutchbank, misappropriated $11m of its clients'money.
Unlike in the U.S., where the Glass-Steagall Act severely limits the ability of banks to engage in securities underwriting, European giants such as ABNAmro and Germany's Deutsche Bank can do everything from issue corporate bonds to sit on the board of directors.
"The longer the process takes, the more more good people will leave, " analysts at Rabo Securities were quoted by AFX News as saying, adding that 'the value of the standalone ABNAmro franchise is deteriorating due to this.