(Bloomberg) -- Barclays saw a rise in the number of U.S. shares traded in its dark pool, paring some of the lossesin the two weeks after it was sued by New York for allegedly lying to customers of the venue.
About 94 million U.S. shares were traded in the dark pool in the week of July 7, up 42% from about 66 million in the previous week, which included the July 4 public holiday, according to data from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. The increase follows two weeks of declines from 312 million starting June 23, data show.
Barclays is fighting allegations it lied to customers and masked the role of high-frequency traders as it sought to boost revenues at what used to be Wall Streets second-largest private-trading venue. The bank said on July 24 that its seeking to have New York Attorney General Eric Schneidermans June 25 complaint thrown out of court, with the lawsuit based on what it called clear and substantial factual errors.
The stock rose 0.4% to 218.95 pence at 11:01 am in London. The shares have dropped 19% this year, making Barclays the worst performer among Britains five largest banks.
Barclays said last week that the attorney generals office also took New Yorks securities law -- the Martin Act -- too far in bringing the lawsuit.
We do not believe this suit is justified, and we have a duty to our shareholders, clients and staff to defend our position, Barclays said in a statement.
The London-based bank is facing various legal battles around the world over allegations of past misconduct, with a potential bill that could rise to as much as 7 billion pounds ($12 billion) over the next four years, analysts at Nomura led by Chintan Joshi, who has a buy rating on the stock, wrote today in a note to clients.
Barclayss dark pool dropped out of the 10 largest U.S. venues following two weeks of declines, having previously been second to Credit Suisse Group AGs Crossfinder, data show. The Zurich-based banks trading venue, still ranked No. 1, saw a 28% increase in the week beginning July 7, Finra data show.
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