BMO Harris Faces $24B Lawsuit Over Petters’ Ponzi Scheme

M&I Bank, now owned by BMO Harris Bank, faces a new lawsuit from Palm Beach Finance’s bankruptcy trustee, holding the bank responsible for helping convicted Ponzi scammer Tom Petters cheat investors out of $3.65 billion. The Chicago-based bank, however, disputes the lawsuit and vows to defend itself vigorously. Tom Petters’ Ponzi scheme In a 10-year scheme, former Minnesota businessman Tom Petters took investment funds from individuals and groups to buy consumer electronic goods from manufacturers and then subsequently sell them to big-box retailers such as Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) and BJ’s Wholesale Club Inc. As the transactions didn’t take place, investors involved early…