WikiLeaks claims next target is 'big US bank'

Speaking to Forbes magazine, Assange said that he was ready to unleash tens of thousands of documents that could "take down a bank or two."

Comparing the documents to the emails that exposed Enron's dealings amid its collapse, the controversial Australian said an existing "big US bank" was the subject of a pending data dump.

Asked about any future leaks, he said: "Yes. We have one related to a bank coming up, that’s a megaleak. It's not as big a scale as the Iraq material, but it’s either tens or hundreds of thousands of documents depending on how you define it."

The interview was conducted in early November, before Sunday's publication of around a quarter of a million leaked United States embassy cables from WikiLeaks that have caused consternation in Washington and capitals around the world.

Assange said the bank leak would "give a true and representative insight into how banks behave at the executive level in a way that will stimulate investigations and reforms, I presume.

"Usually when you get leaks at this level, it's about one particular case or one particular violation."

Amid the economic crisis a handful of "too big to fail" US banks have come under scrutiny for their dealings, particularly with mortgaged-backed securities that helped fuel the meltdown.

Executives from Goldman Sachs and the now-defunct Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns have been hauled before Congress to explain their bank's actions.

Assange mentioned Goldman Sachs by name in the interview, but did not confirm the Wall Street giant will be the target of the leak.

Goldman has recently agreed a 550 million dollar settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle fraud charges.

Facing allegations of defrauding investors, the storied investment bank admitted it had made a "mistake" and given "incomplete" information to clients.

Assange said that "about 50 percent" of the documents that the nonprofit organization holds relate to the corporate world.

(c) 2010 AFP