The five banks that agreed to plead guilty to charges tied to foreign-exchange rigging received the permission they needed from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to keep their businesses running unimpeded, a person familiar with the matter said.

The waivers were approved in a vote by the five-member commission in a closed meeting late Tuesday, said the person, who asked not to be named because the matter isn't public. Banks pleading guilty need waivers from the SEC to continue managing mutual funds and raising capital quickly.

Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays Plc and Royal Bank of Scotland Plc agreed to plead guilty to felony charges of conspiring to manipulate the price of U.S. dollars and euros in settlements with the Justice Department announced in Washington Wednesday. The main banking unit of UBS Group AG agreed to plead guilty to a wire-fraud charge related to interest-rate manipulation.