BB&T, IRS trial ends but no still no ruling

BB&T's court fight with the Internal Revenue Service ended last month, but the winner remains unclear, BB&T disclosed Thursday in a securities filing.

The Winston-Salem-based bank, the second-largest in North Carolina by deposits, said the trial's last day was April 2 but no court decision has been handed down.

At issue is $892 million in penalties and other related payments BB&T made to the IRS in March 2010 after the agency said the bank shouldn't have taken advantage of foreign tax credits. BB&T sued the IRS in U.S. Court for Federal Claims to get the money back.

The type of tax credit at the heart of the lawsuit has also come under scrutiny in cases involving Wells Fargo and the Bank of New York Mellon Corp.

After a judged ruled in February against BNY Mellon's use of the credits, BB&T, bracing for the possibility of a similar ruling, recorded an expense of $281 million in the first quarter of this year.

BB&T, though, remains confident about its odds in prevailing, saying it's raised points not considered by the U.S. Tax Court in the BNY Mellon case.