J.P. Morgan Chase and Citigroup have agreed to pay more than $300 million to settle charges that they knowingly deceived investors by helping Enron hide billions of dollars in loans.

J.P. Morgan Chase and Citigroup, two of the nation?s largest banks, knowingly portrayed loans as cash generated by Enron. According to The New York Times what the banks did was deceiving but not illegal.

The Times reports ?these settlements are a strong signal that banks, accountants and lawyers can now be held responsible if a transaction is legal in every respect but results in a outcome that deceives investors.?