A jury in a New Jersey court ruled Monday that Parmalat SA, which went bankrupt after a 2003 accounting scandal, defrauded Citigroup Inc. by laying blame at the New York company's door.
The jury voted 6-1 after a five-month trial and awarded Citi $364 million in damages.
Parmalat's current managers accused Citi of helping former executives cover up illegal accounting practices that led to the dairy company's implosion. Citi bankers served as advisers to Parmalat at the time, and the Italian company said the bankers took high advisory fees and bonuses while setting up transactions that they knew Parmalat was not in position to fund.
In addition, Parmalat, which emerged from bankruptcy in 2005, said Citi lent it money to help it cover up losses.
Citi countersued, saying it had been duped by Parmalat executives.
"We have said from the beginning of this case that we have done nothing wrong," Citi said Monday. "Citi was the largest victim of the Parmalat fraud and not part of it."
A spokesman for Parmalat, which had sought $2.2 billion of damages, could not be immediately reached for comment.
