A New York judge has determined that JPMorgan Chase must face a lawsuit from the French manufacturer of Ray-Ban glasses, EssilorLuxottica, which claims that the bank failed to prevent suspicious transactions that led to a $272 million theft from its account.
US District Judge Lewis Liman ruled that EssilorLuxottica’s Thailand unit can proceed with its lawsuit, asserting that JPMorgan violated a New York law regarding commercial contracts, specifically the requirement for refunds of unauthorized payment orders, according to Reuters.
The lawsuit, initiated in April, alleges that JPMorgan should have identified, reported, and blocked suspicious payments that occurred in the latter months of 2019. The cybercriminals managed to recruit one of EssilorLuxottica’s employees in Thailand to orchestrate fraudulent transactions, which significantly increased monthly transfers from $15 million to $100 million.
EssilorLuxottica contends that JPMorgan overlooked numerous warning signs associated with the unusual transaction patterns. The French company highlights that the cash transfers were all made in round dollar amounts (without cents), marking a stark change from previous periods, during which such transactions were rare.
Judge Liman dismissed JPMorgan’s defense, which characterized the client as having “authorized” the transfers due to the two approvals required for each transaction, according to Reuters.