Morgan Stanley, Bear Stearns and Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) have been named as defendants in a class action law suit alleging they misled investors in the initial public offering of Regent Communications, a US company quoted on Nasdaq.

The three firms underwrote the IPO of Regent Communications, a radio broadcast development company. In the IPO, 16 million shares were offered at $8.50 per share on January 25, 2000. The complaint alleges that the underwriters had made secret arrangements designed to favour some investors and fix the share price once the IPO had been completed.