Dec 23 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories in the Wall Street Journal. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

- The U.S. government struck a $7.2 billion settlement with Deutsche Bank over toxic securities, while separately filing a lawsuit against Barclays Plc alleging more than $30 billion in fraud-tainted sales. http://on.wsj.com/2hxmHsY

- Italy's government has set up a backstop fund to shore up troubled banks, setting the stage for the rescue of troubled Italian lender Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA. http://on.wsj.com/2hxjGJd

- Federal investigators are asking questions about a billionaire New York hedge-fund manager and a Bermuda reinsurer as they examine the alleged fraud by hedge fund Platinum Partner. http://on.wsj.com/2hxnHx7

- Bridgewater Associates LP, the world's largest hedge-fund firm, wants day-to-day management including hiring, firing and decision-making to be guided by software that doles out instructions. The project is the latest bid by founder Ray Dalio to perpetuate his unorthodox philosophy. http://on.wsj.com/2hxmQN2

- Incoming U.S. President Donald Trump rounded out his senior White House team, elevating a set of trusted advisers who helped engineer his surprise election victory and bringing some of the rhythms and spirit of his unconventional campaign into the government he will soon lead. http://on.wsj.com/2hxjz0e

- Uber Technologies Inc is moving a test of its self-driving cars to the friendlier environs of Arizona after suffering a regulatory defeat in California over its use of the vehicles in San Francisco. http://on.wsj.com/2hxk0rg

- Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht's admission to U.S. prosecutors that it paid hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to win lucrative infrastructure contracts is reverberating across Latin America, sparking a political crisis. http://on.wsj.com/2hxdKQx

- Beijing is considering retaliatory steps after Trump appointed China trade skeptic Peter Navarro to head American trade and industrial policy. http://on.wsj.com/2hxomPr

- Ivory Coast in October became Africa's fastest-growing economy, a sharp reversal from 2011, when a bloody civil war left 3,000 people dead. http://on.wsj.com/2hxjIR6 (Compiled by Parikshit Mishra in Bengaluru)