Ex-Currency Trader Sentenced To Seven and a Half Years

The trader, John M. Rusnak, apologized during his sentencing and said he wanted to try to make restitution that could lead to ''some kind of redemption.''

He could have faced up to 30 years in prison. The sentence was part of a plea deal with prosecutors.

Mr. Rusnak was indicted in June in the biggest bank fraud case since Nick Leeson lost more than $1 billion on futures trades and caused the collapse of Barings Bank of Britain in 1995.

At Allfirst, Mr. Rusnak ran up the losses over five years, mostly from trading Japanese yen. Prosecutors said he dug himself a deeper hole by taking ever-larger risks as he tried to recoup lost money.

Mr. Rusnak did not directly profit from the losses, but prosecutors said he racked up bonuses of more than $650,000 by making it look as if the bank was making money instead of losing vast sums from 1997 to 2001. Prosecutors said he collected about $433,000 in bonuses before the fraud was discovered.