JPMorgan Chase & Co. reached a $13 billion deal with the Justice Department to end all probes in the bank's sale of mortgage bonds, this set a record as the largest paid amount by a financial firm in a settlement with the government. Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement today "Without a doubt the conduct uncovered in this investigation helped sow the seeds of the mortgage meltdown." he also said that "JP Morgan was not the only financial institution during this period to knowingly bundle toxic loans and sell them to unsuspecting investors, but that is no excuse for the firms behavior." Surprisingly the settlement doesn't protect the bank or its employees from criminal liability. JPMorgan also has to admit it made "serious, material misrepresentations to the public."