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The parallel investigations on opposite sides of the Atlantic could produce a collective settlement soon, rather than separate deals by individual banks, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing several people familiar with the discussions. FCA investigators hope to conclude their investigation this year, while the U.S. probes are likely to continue into 2015, the Journal reported.

The 10 banks that collectively hold the largest share of the foreign exchange market could face as much as $14.5 billion in future costs linked to the investigations, according to a Moody's Investors Service estimate issued Monday.

The foreign exchange investigations are among several multinational examinations focused on financial benchmarks that affect trillions of dollars in personal and business transactions. Separate probes have focused on suspected manipulation of oil prices, interest rate swaps, precious metal pricing and the London Interbank Offered Rate, or Libor — used to set rates on mortgages, credit cards and loans.

The mammoth foreign exchange currency market traditionally operated with little outside oversight. The investigations center on suspected rigging of the rates for 160 world currencies that have been calculated and distributed by a joint venture of the WM Co. and Thomson Reuters.

Investigators suspect that traders at major banks conspired in efforts to nudge rates up or down, thereby boosting their trading profits. Several banks have fired or placed traders on leave since the investigations began last year.