NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo on Thursday filed a lawsuit against Swiss banking giant UBS (UBS:21.41, -1.19, -5.3%) , alleging that the firm deceived investors in auction rate securities by telling clients the investments were cash equivalents. He also claimed senior executives at the firm divested themselves of $21 million of auction rate securities as the market collapsed, but they continued to encourage customers to buy them. Cuomo released transcripts of subpoenaed emails that he said backed up the charges. "Not only is UBS guilty of committing a flagrant breach of trust between the bank and its customers, its top executives jumped ship as soon the securities market started to collapse, leaving thousands of customers holding the bag," Cuomo said in a press release.
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