The Hunts of Texas agree to $500,000 soybean fine

The Hunt family of Texas has agreed to pay a $500,000 fine to the government over claims the billionaire investors once tried to corner the soybean futures market.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission said the civil penalty was the largest in the history of the agency, which polices commodity markets. But the commission, after a 51-month legal fight, failed to get the Hunts to give up profits from their 1977 foray into the soybean futures market. The Hunts and the federal governments are still tangling over charges the Texan s tried to corner the silver market last year.