Bank of America retaliated late yesterday at bankrupt Parmalat's $10 billion damages suit against the bank by filing to dismiss the claim in the federal court in North Carolina.
Parmalat's administrator, Mr Enrico Bondi - appointed last December to rescue the company - sued the number three US bank in its home state in October, accusing it of playing a central role in the Italian food giant's insolvency by helping to disguise the company's finances.
But Bank of America sought to throw out the lawsuit yesterday, saying Parmalat's claim ignored the bank's $462 million exposure in unsecured credit to the food group.
It accused Parmalat of seeking to enrich itself with the claim. "Bank of America is one of Parmalat's largest victims," the bank said in a 54-page court filing.
"With what can only be described as a reckless but calculated disregard of the facts . . . Bondi has targeted any non-Italian entity that he imagines could enlarge the estate of the Parmalat companies . . . while attempting to misdirect attention from the actual perpetrators of the Parmalat fraud."
In addition, Bank of America argued that under US law a company that has participated in a fraud cannot sue other parties to recover damages from that fraud.
Parmalat declined to comment today.
The Italian group sensationally revealed a fake €4 billion account with Bank of America nearly a year ago and subsequently collapsed under €14 billion of debt.
It has since brought $10 billion damages claims against Citigroup and against auditing firms Deloitte and Grant Thornton.
Parmalat has also sought to exclude from a proposed €12 billion debt-for-equity swap around €4 billion of money it owes to largely non-Italian entities - including Bank of America and Citigroup - arguing these credits were either illegal or not sufficiently documented.