BBC News - Timeline: Libor-fixing scandal Timeline: Libor-fixing scandal Libor, the London inter-bank lending rate, is considered to be one of the most crucial interest rates in finance. It underpins trillions of pounds worth of loans and financial contracts. So, when Barclays was fined £290m in June last year after some of its derivatives traders were found to have attempted to rig this key rate, already weak public confidence in banks was harmed further. The scandal led to the resignation of both Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond and chairman Marcus Agius. Here are some of the key dates in the scandal: 2005 As early as 2005 there was evidence Barclays had tried to manipulate dollar Libor and Euribor (the eurozone's equivalent of Libor) rates at the request of its derivatives traders and other banks. Misconduct was widespread, involving staff in New York, London and Tokyo as well as external traders. Between January 2005 and June 2009, Barclays derivatives traders made a total of 257 requests to fix Libor and Euribor rates, according to a report by the FSA .

One Barclays trader told a trader from another bank in relation to three-month dollar Libor: "duuuude... what's up with ur guys 34.5 3m fix... tell him to get it up!". 2007 At the onset of the financial crisis in September 2007 with the collapse of Northern Rock, liquidity concerns drew public scrutiny towards Libor. Barclays manipulated Libor submissions to give a healthier picture of the bank's credit quality and its ability to raise funds. A lower submission would deflect concerns it had problems borrowing cash from the markets. Barclays' Libor submissions were at the higher end of the range of contributing banks, and prompted media speculation about the true picture of the bank's risk and credit profile. Glossary in full Senior treasury managers instructed submitters to reduce Libor to avoid negative publicity, saying Barclays should not "stick its head above the parapet", according to the FSA report. From as early as 28 August, the New York Fed said it had received mass-distribution emails that suggested that Libor submissions were being set unrealistically low by the banks.

On 28 November, a senior submitter at Barclays wrote in an internal email that "Libors are not reflecting the true cost of money", according to the FSA. In December, a Barclays compliance officer contacted the UK banking lobby group British Bankers' Association (BBA) and the FSA and described "problematic actions" by other banks, saying they appeared to be understating their Libor submissions, according to US regulator the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) . On 6 December, a Barclays compliance officer contacted the FSA, according to the FSA report, to express concern about the Libor rates being submitted by other banks, but did not inform the FSA that its own submissions were incorrect, instead saying that they were "within a reasonable range". The FSA said that the same compliance officer then told Barclays senior management that he told the FSA "we have consistently been the highest (or one of the two highest) rate provider in recent weeks, but we're justifiably reluctant to go higher given our recent media experience", and that the FSA "agreed that the approach we've been adopting seems sensible in the circumstances".

In early December, the CFTC said that the Barclays employee responsible for submitting the bank's dollar Libor rates contacted it to complain that Barclays was not setting "honest" rates. The employee emailed his supervisor about his concerns, saying: "My worry is that we (both Barclays and the contributor banle panel) are being seen to be contributing patently false rates. "We are therefore being dishonest by definition and are at risk of damaging our reputation in the market and with the regulators. Can we discuss urgently please?" On 6 December a Barclays compliance officer contacted the FSA about concerns over the levels that other banks were setting their US Libor rate. This was made after a submitter flagged to compliance his concern about mis-reporting the rate. Compliance informed the FSA that "we have consistently been the highest (or one of the two highest) rate provider in recent weeks, but we're justifiably reluctant to go higher given our recent media experience". He also reported that the FSA "agreed that the approach we've been adopting seems sensible in the circumstances, so I suggest we maintain status quo for now".

In a phone call on 17 December a Barclays employee told the New York Fed that the Libor rate was being fixed at a level that was unrealistically low . 2008 On 11 April a New York Fed official queried a Barclays employee in detail as to the extent of problems with Libor reporting. The Barclays employee explained that Barclays was underreporting its rate to avoid the stigma associated with being an outlier with respect to its Libor submissions, relative to other participating banks On 16 April, the Wall Street Journal published a report that questioned the integrity of Libor. Around this time, according to the CFTC, a senior Barclays treasury manager informed the BBA in a phone call that Barclays had not been reporting accurately. But he defended the bank, saying it was not the worst offender: "We're clean, but we're dirty-clean, rather than clean-clean." Download the reader here "No one's clean-clean," the BBA representative responded. According to the FSA, following the Wall Street Journal report, Barclays received communications from the BBA expressing concern about the accuracy of its Libor submissions. The BBA said if the media reports were true, it was unacceptable.

On 17 April, a manager made comments in a call to the FSA that Barclays had been understating its Libor submissions: "We did stick our head above the parapet last year, got it shot off, and put it back down again. So, to the extent that, um, the Libors have been understated, are we guilty of being part of the pack? You could say we are... Um, so I would, I would sort of express us maybe as not clean clean, but clean in principle." In late April officials from the New York Federal Reserve Bank - which oversees the banks in New York - met to determine what steps might be taken to address the problems with Libor, and notified other US agencies. On 6 May the New York Fed briefed senior officials from the US Treasury in detail, and thereafter sent a further report on problems with Libor . The New York Fed officials also met with BBA officials to express their concerns and establish in greater depth the flaws in the Libor-setting process.

On 29 May, Barclays agreed internally to tell the media that the bank had always quoted accurate and fair Libors and had acted "in defiance of the market" rather than submitting incorrect rates, according to the FSA. In early June, Tim Geithner, who was the head of the New York Fed at the time, sent Bank of England governor Sir Mervyn King, a list of proposals to to try to tackle Libor's credibility problem . They included the need "to eliminate the incentive to misreport" by protecting the identity of the banks that submitted the highest and lowest rates. Sir Mervyn and Mr Geithner, now US Treasury Secretary, had discussed the matter at a central bankers' gathering a few days earlier. Download the reader here Spring: The BBA prepares a review of Libor, later described by the Bank of England's deputy governor Paul Tucker as "tremendously important because of the eroding credibility of Libor" . The Bank wanted Libor to reflect actual rates, not subjective submissions. Mr Tucker rang the banks stressing the review should be carried out by senior representatives, not the junior people normally sent to sit on the BBA committee.

On 10 June, the BBA published a consultation paper seeking comments about proposals to modify Libor. "The BBA proposes to explore options for avoiding the stigma whilst maintaining transparency," it said. Barclays contributed comments but avoided mentioning its own rate submissions. On 5 August, the BBA published a feedback statement on its consultation paper , and concluded that the existing process for submissions would be retained. In September, following the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the Bank of England had a conversation with a senior Barclays official, in which the Bank raised questions about Barclays' liquidity position and its relatively high Libor submissions. Barclays reveals Bank call memo On 13 October, the UK government announces plans to pump billions of pounds of taxpayers' money into three major banks, effectively part-nationalising Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Lloyds TSB and HBOS. A week later, on 21 and 22 October, Paul Tucker and senior government official Sir Jeremy Heywood discussed why Libor in the UK was not falling as fast as in the US, despite government action. Sir Jeremy also asked why Barclays' borrowing costs were so high. "A lot of speculation in the market over what they are up to," he says in an email.

In subsequent evidence to the Treasury Select Committee Mr Tucker later suggests there was widespread concern at this time that Barclays was "next in line" for emergency government help. He was in regular contact with Bob Diamond, emails show. On 24 October a Barclays employee tells a New York Fed official in a telephone call that the Libor rate is "absolute rubbish" . On 29 October Paul Tucker and Bob Diamond - head of Barclays' investment bank at the time - speak on the phone. According to Mr Diamond's account of the conversation , emailed to colleagues the next day, Mr Tucker said senior Whitehall officials wanted to know why Barclays was "always at the top end of Libor pricing". According to the Barclays chief executive, Mr Tucker said the rates "did not always need to be the case that we appeared as high as we have recently". Mr Tucker later said that gave the "wrong impression" of their conversation and said he did not encourage Barclays to manipulate its Libor submissions. Following this discussion with the Bank of England, Barclays instructed Libor submitters to lower the rate to be "within the pack".

On 17 November, the BBA issued a draft document about how Libor rates should be set and required banks to have their rate submission procedures audited as part of compliance. The final paper would be circulated on 16 July 2009. 2009 On 2 November the BBA circulated guidelines for all contributor banks on setting Libor rates in the same manner. Barclays made no changes to its systems to take account of the BBA guidelines. In December Barclays started to improve its systems and controls but ignored the BBA's guidelines. Until 2009 the bank did not have a formal Chinese wall between the derivatives team and the submitters. 2010 In June, Barclays circulated an email to submitters that set out "fundamental rules" that required them, for example, to report to compliance any attempts to influence Libor submissions either externally or internally. It also prohibited communication with external traders "that could be be seen as an attempt to agree on or impact Libor levels". 2011 In late 2011, Royal Bank of Scotland sacked four people for their alleged roles in the Libor-fixing scandal.

2012 On 27 June, Barclays admitted to misconduct. The UK's FSA imposed a £59.5m penalty . The US Department of Justice and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) imposed fines worth £102m and £128m respectively, forcing Barclays to pay a total of around £290m. On 29 June, chief executive Bob Diamond said he would attend a Commons Treasury Select Committee and that the bank would co-operate with authorities. However, he insisted he would not resign. The same day, Bank of England governor Sir Mervyn King called for a "cultural change", adding: "The idea that one can base the future calculation of Libor on the idea that 'my word is my Libor' is now dead." He said implementing the Vickers banking reforms was the most important first step, but ruled out a Leveson-style inquiry into the banks. On 2 July, Barclays chairman Marcus Agius resigned and also tendered his resignation as chairman of the BBA. Mr Diamond said in a letter to staff that he would "get to the bottom" of what happened.

Prime Minister David Cameron announced a parliamentary review of the banking sector, to be headed by the chairman of the Treasury Select Committee, Andrew Tyrie. The review should ensure that the UK had the "toughest and most transparent rules of any major financial sector", Mr Cameron said. On 3 July, Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond resigned , saying that the external pressure on the bank risked "damaging the franchise". He was followed by Barclays chief operating officer Jerry del Missier, who resigned the same day. On 4 July, Mr Diamond faced a three-hour grilling from MPs on the Treasury Committee over the scandal, during which he described the behaviour of those responsible as "reprehensible" and said it had made him physically ill. The Committee subsequently accused him of giving evidence that fell short of its expected standards. On 5 July, credit rating agency Moody's lowered its rating outlook on Barclays from stable to negative. On 6 July, the Serious Fraud Office launched a criminal investigation into Libor manipulation. Deputy governor of the Bank of England Paul Tucker gave evidence to the Treasury on 9 July, insisting he had not leant on Barclays to lower its submissions, nor had he been asked to do so by the government.

On 16 July, Barclays chief operating officer Jerry del Missier told MPs he was instructed by Diamond to lower the bank's Libor submissions. He also told them he believed the Bank of England alone instructed Barclays to lower them. On 17 July, US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke told a Senate committee that the Libor system was "structurally flawed" said that he still did not have full confidence in the system. Earlier, the governor of the Bank of England, Sir Mervyn King, told the Treasury Committee that UK authorities had been worried about senior management at Barclays, even before the recent Libor scandal broke. Sir Mervyn said Barclays had sailed "close to the wind" too often. On 31 July, Deutsche Bank confirmed that a "limited number" of staff were involved in the Libor rate-rigging scandal. However, it said an internal inquiry had cleared senior management of taking part. On 10 August, the FSA published its initial findings on what needs to be done to reform the Libor rate-setting system. The FSA's managing director, Martin Wheatley, said trust in Libor "needs to be repaired" and that the current system was no longer "viable".

On 16 August, it was announced that seven banks including Barclays, HSBC and RBS are to face legal questioning in the US. The other banks to receive the subpoenas from the attorney generals of New York and Connecticut were Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan and UBS. On 18 August, the Treasury Committee published its report into the Libor rate-fixing scandal. The MPs blamed bank bosses for "disgraceful" behavior. They demanded changes including higher fines for firms that failed to co-operate with regulators, examination of gaps in criminal law, and a much stronger governance framework at the Bank of England. The committee also criticised the evidence of former Barclays boss Bob Diamond, saying it had been "highly selective". In response, he said he had "answered every question that was put to me truthfully, candidly and based on information available to me". On 25 September, the British Bankers' Association (BBA), the organisation that sets the Libor rate, said it would accept losing the role. Its statement came ahead of the FSA's final report on how to reform Libor, due to be published on 28 September.

On 28 September, the FSA confirmed that the BBA would no longer administer Libor, and would be replaced by a data provider (an organisation such as Bloomberg or Reuters) or a regulated exchange. The report also said that the Libor system was broken and suggested its complete overhaul, including criminal prosecutions for those who try to manipulate it. The regulator also suggested basing Libor calculations on actual rates being used, rather than estimates currently provided by banks. On 11 December, the UK's Serious Fraud Office said three men had been arrested in connection with its continuing investigations into Libor. On 19 December, Swiss bank UBS is fined a total of $1.5bn (£940m) by US, UK and Swiss regulators for attempting to manipulate Libor. It agrees to pay $1.2bn in combined fines to the US Department of Justice and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission, £160m to the UK's Financial Services Authority, and 59m Swiss Francs to the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority.

2013 On 10 January, the BBC's business editor, Robert Peston, discloses that RBS is in talks with UK and US regulators over the size of fines to settle the Libor investigation. He also warns that the resignation of a senior executive was possible as part of a settlement. A week later, on 17 January, the new chief of Barclays, Antony Jenkins, tells staff to sign up to a new code of conduct - or leave the firm - as part of an attempt to ensure that scandals such as Libor-fixing never happen again. On 25 January, a judge refuses a request from 104 senior Barclays staff for anonymity during a court case. Guardian Care Homes had accused the bank of mis-selling it an interest rate hedging product linked to Libor. On 31 January, Deutsche Bank tells investors that it may face lawsuits related to the manipulation of Libor, as well as other recent scandals. Therefore, the bank said, it was setting aside 1bn euros to cover potential litigation.

Amid speculation that RBS was close to a Libor settlement, on 2 February the Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne says that any fines imposed on the bank should be met by bankers themselves, not taxpayers. More on This Story Barclays bank CEO Diamond resigns amid scandal - CNN.com Barclays bank CEO Diamond resigns amid scandal By the CNN Wire Staff Updated 6:25 AM ET, Wed July 4, 2012 Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds. JUST WATCHED Bob Diamond bids adieu to Barclays CEO post 00:59 Story highlights Another top Barclays executive resigns hours after CEO Bob Diamond The bank was fined $450 milllon over alleged manipulation of lending rates The rate-fixing scandal took money out of the public's pocket, an analyst says Chairman Marcus Agius resigned a day earlier but will now stay on The chief executive of Barclays, one of the world's largest banks, resigned Tuesday in the wake of a scandal, the bank announced. Bob Diamond's resignation is effective immediately, the bank said. Diamond has long been a controversial figure, and has been a vocal backer of huge bonuses for bankers.

"It's about pay for performance," he told CNN earlier this year, calling bonuses "rewards for success." The bank announced the resignation of Chief Operating Officer Jerry del Missier hours after Diamond's. Chairman Marcus Agius resigned on Monday, but in the wake of Diamond's resignation, Agius returned as chief executive on Tuesday. Barclay's reputation has been hammered by a scandal involving the rates at which banks lend each other money, known as Libor. JUST WATCHED MUST WATCH Bob Diamond to appear in Parliament 03:12 That rate affects how much interest ordinary people pay on everything from credit card debt to home mortgages and student loans. Former investment banker Ralph Silva says that is why the scandal has caused such fury. "If they're manipulating Libor, what they're basically doing is taking money out of the public's pocket, because their mortgage rates change, because their interest rates change, their loans/credit cards change -- or their pension income changes," he said.

Why LIBOR scandal will change banking culture The chairman of the Financial Services Authority, Britain's banking regulator, last month blasted the "cynical greed of traders asking their colleagues to falsify their Libor submissions so that they could make bigger profits." FSA chairman Adair Turner said the scandal "has caused a huge blow to the reputation of the banking industry" and "has justifiably shocked and angered people." Diamond is due to to testify about the scandal before the British parliament's Treasury Committee Wednesday. The bank was fined more than $450 million last week by British and American regulators for rate-fixing during the height of the global financial crisis, and is one of a host of banks facing lawsuits in New York over the scandal. At least seven other banks are under investigation on suspicion of rate-fixing, leading to speculation that Diamond could be the first of many executives to resign. Financial regulators in London have not named the banks, but Deutsche Bank, Royal Bank of Scotland, Credit Suisse and UBS have acknowledged that they are under investigation. Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase have also confirmed that they are under investigation. Bank of America has refused to comment on reports that its is being probed.

British Chancellor George Osborne welcomed Diamond's resignation, calling it the right decision for the bank and the country. "We need our banks to be focused on lending to the economy, not on the scandals of the past, and I hope this will be the first step towards a new culture of responsibility in British banking which is what the British people want to see," said Osborne, effectively the country's finance minister. British Prime Minister David Cameron said Monday that a full parliamentary inquiry would be held into the Libor rate-fixing scandal and standards in the banking industry, with witnesses called to give evidence under oath. The resignation of the American-born Diamond comes a day after Barclays chairman Agius announced his own resignation over the lending-rate scandal. But Agius reversed his decision Tuesday and will lead the search for a new chief executive, Barclays said. He will stay on until a new chief executive is selected and then "begin the process of stepping down," the bank said. Barclay's is the 15th largest bank in the world, according to an annual list of the world's top 1000 banks released by The Banker magazine on Monday.

It is Britain's second most profitable bank, and the 18th most profitable in the world, the trade magazine said. Diamond's total compensation package for 2011 was worth £6.3 million ($7.92 million), including salary, bonuses and share options, the bank said. The annual bonus consisted of £2.7 million in shares and was deferred over three years, the bank said. In his resignation statement, Diamond said he always aimed "to do what I believed to be in the best interests of Barclays." Barclays chairman to resign "No decision over that period was as hard as the one that I make now to stand down as chief executive. The external pressure placed on Barclays has reached a level that risks damaging the franchise -- I cannot let that happen," Diamond said. "I am deeply disappointed that the impression created by the events announced last week about what Barclays and its people stand for could not be further from the truth. I know that each and every one of the people at Barclays works hard every day to serve our customers and clients. That is how we support economic growth and the communities in which we live and work.

"I leave behind an extraordinarily talented management team that I know is well placed to help the business emerge from this difficult period as one of the leaders in the global banking industry." "Bob Diamond has made an enormous contribution to Barclays over the last 16 years of distinguished service to the Group, building Barclays Investment Bank into one of the leading global investment banks in the world," Agius said in the statement. The $450 million fine came after the bank admitted some of its trading desks purposely under-reported its interest rates as part of LIBOR (London interbank Offered Rate) -- an interest rate floor between big banks that is set in London each trading morning. Last week, Bank of England Governor Mervyn King attacked British banking culture, saying something had gone very wrong with an industry he derided for resorting to "deceitful" methods to make money.

Barclays boss Bob Diamond resigns amid Libor scandal - BBC News BBC News Barclays boss Bob Diamond resigns amid Libor scandal 3 July 2012 Close share panel Image caption Bob Diamond's severance package has not yet been decided, Barclays says Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond has resigned a week after the bank was fined a record amount for trying to manipulate inter-bank lending rates. BBC business editor Robert Peston said he was encouraged to go by the heads of the Bank of England and the FSA. Mr Diamond said he was stepping down because the external pressure on the bank risked "damaging the franchise". Chief operating officer Jerry del Missier has also resigned, the third top executive in two days to do so. Barclays chairman Marcus Agius, who had announced his own resignation on Monday, will now take over the running of Barclays until a new chief executive is appointed. 'Cynical greed' BBC business editor Robert Peston said the heads of the City's two main regulators had been unable to force Mr Diamond out "because the recent FSA investigation into how Barclays attempted to rig the important Libor interest rates did not find him personally culpable".

It is a soap opera like no other I can remember in my 30 years of reporting on the City By Robert PestonBusiness editor FSA boss slams 'greed' at banks "However, as a regulated institution, it was impossible for Barclays' board to ignore the revealed wishes of the two most powerful regulators in the City." Earlier, Lord Turner, the chairman of the Financial Services Authority, described the outrage that has built up over the bank's actions. "The cynical greed of traders asking their colleagues to falsify their Libor submissions so that they could make bigger profits - has justifiably shocked and angered people, in particular when we are facing hard economic times provoked by the financial crisis," he told the Financial Services Authority's annual meeting. Committee appearance How Libor scandal developed Criminal charges: The problems Mr Diamond will still appear before MPs on the Treasury Committee on Wednesday to answer questions about the Libor affair. "I look forward to fulfilling my obligation to contribute to the Treasury Committee's enquiries related to the settlements that Barclays announced last week without my leadership in question," Mr Diamond said in a statement.

He is expected to be questioned about a conversation he had with the deputy governor of the Bank of England, Paul Tucker, about Barclays' Libor submissions at the height of the credit crunch in 2008. Barclays' managers came to believe, after the conversation between Mr Diamond and Mr Tucker, that the Bank of England had sanctioned them to lie about what they were paying to borrow when providing data to the committees that set the Libor rate. Inquiry row Chancellor George Osborne welcomed Mr Diamond's departure and said he hoped it was the "first step towards a new culture of responsibility" in banking. "It is the right decision for the country," Mr Osborne said, saying the UK needed a strong Barclays concentrating on lending and contributing to economic recovery. Labour leader Ed Miliband said it was "necessary and right" that Bob Diamond stepped down. "But this is about much more than one individual, it's about the culture and practices of the banking industry," he said. "That's why we need a full, judge-led, independent inquiry, to get to the bottom of those practices and make recommendations for change in the future.

We've had missed opportunities before, we've got to seize this moment." Labour is critical of the government's decision to call a parliamentary inquiry, chaired by the head of the Treasury Committee, Andrew Tyrie MP, rather than a full Leveson-style inquiry, independent of politicians. Big pay-off? Last week, regulators in the US and UK fined Barclays £290m ($450m) for attempting to rig Libor and Euribor, the interest rates at which banks lend to each other, which underpin trillions of pounds worth of financial transactions. Libor is to banking what the Millie Dowler case was to phone hacking By Nick RobinsonPolitical editor Labour 'must see sense on banks' Staff did this over a number of years, trying to raise them for profit and then, during the financial crisis, lowering them to hide the level to which Barclays was under financial stress. Mr Diamond is one of the UK's highest paid chief executives, earning £20m last year, and was described as "the unacceptable face" of banking by the then business secretary Lord Mandelson in 2010.

The details of any severance package are not yet known, but former City minister Lord Myners suggests it could add up to £20m-£30m. "I think his resignation letter is drafted with an eye to that [pay-off], because he admits no guilt on his part at all," the Labour peer told BBC News. "The shareholders of Barclays will be expecting the board to ensure that not a penny more is paid to Bob Diamond than that to which he is legally entitled," he said. US-born Mr Diamond was head of Barclays Capital, its investment bank division, when its staff were trying to manipulate the key inter-bank rates. "He maintains that he didn't know what was going on," says Robert Peston. Investigations are continuing in the UK and the US into other banks over Libor fixing, including criminal investigations by the Department of Justice. The Serious Fraud Office in the UK is looking into possible criminal prosecutions.

Barclays boss Bob Diamond resigns amid Libor scandal - BBC News BBC News Barclays boss Bob Diamond resigns amid Libor scandal 3 July 2012 Close share panel Image caption Bob Diamond's severance package has not yet been decided, Barclays says Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond has resigned a week after the bank was fined a record amount for trying to manipulate inter-bank lending rates. BBC business editor Robert Peston said he was encouraged to go by the heads of the Bank of England and the FSA. Mr Diamond said he was stepping down because the external pressure on the bank risked "damaging the franchise". Chief operating officer Jerry del Missier has also resigned, the third top executive in two days to do so. Barclays chairman Marcus Agius, who had announced his own resignation on Monday, will now take over the running of Barclays until a new chief executive is appointed. 'Cynical greed' BBC business editor Robert Peston said the heads of the City's two main regulators had been unable to force Mr Diamond out "because the recent FSA investigation into how Barclays attempted to rig the important Libor interest rates did not find him personally culpable".

It is a soap opera like no other I can remember in my 30 years of reporting on the City By Robert PestonBusiness editor FSA boss slams 'greed' at banks "However, as a regulated institution, it was impossible for Barclays' board to ignore the revealed wishes of the two most powerful regulators in the City." Earlier, Lord Turner, the chairman of the Financial Services Authority, described the outrage that has built up over the bank's actions. "The cynical greed of traders asking their colleagues to falsify their Libor submissions so that they could make bigger profits - has justifiably shocked and angered people, in particular when we are facing hard economic times provoked by the financial crisis," he told the Financial Services Authority's annual meeting. Committee appearance How Libor scandal developed Criminal charges: The problems Mr Diamond will still appear before MPs on the Treasury Committee on Wednesday to answer questions about the Libor affair. "I look forward to fulfilling my obligation to contribute to the Treasury Committee's enquiries related to the settlements that Barclays announced last week without my leadership in question," Mr Diamond said in a statement.

He is expected to be questioned about a conversation he had with the deputy governor of the Bank of England, Paul Tucker, about Barclays' Libor submissions at the height of the credit crunch in 2008. Barclays' managers came to believe, after the conversation between Mr Diamond and Mr Tucker, that the Bank of England had sanctioned them to lie about what they were paying to borrow when providing data to the committees that set the Libor rate. Inquiry row Chancellor George Osborne welcomed Mr Diamond's departure and said he hoped it was the "first step towards a new culture of responsibility" in banking. "It is the right decision for the country," Mr Osborne said, saying the UK needed a strong Barclays concentrating on lending and contributing to economic recovery. Labour leader Ed Miliband said it was "necessary and right" that Bob Diamond stepped down. "But this is about much more than one individual, it's about the culture and practices of the banking industry," he said. "That's why we need a full, judge-led, independent inquiry, to get to the bottom of those practices and make recommendations for change in the future.

We've had missed opportunities before, we've got to seize this moment." Labour is critical of the government's decision to call a parliamentary inquiry, chaired by the head of the Treasury Committee, Andrew Tyrie MP, rather than a full Leveson-style inquiry, independent of politicians. Big pay-off? Last week, regulators in the US and UK fined Barclays £290m ($450m) for attempting to rig Libor and Euribor, the interest rates at which banks lend to each other, which underpin trillions of pounds worth of financial transactions. Libor is to banking what the Millie Dowler case was to phone hacking By Nick RobinsonPolitical editor Labour 'must see sense on banks' Staff did this over a number of years, trying to raise them for profit and then, during the financial crisis, lowering them to hide the level to which Barclays was under financial stress. Mr Diamond is one of the UK's highest paid chief executives, earning £20m last year, and was described as "the unacceptable face" of banking by the then business secretary Lord Mandelson in 2010.

The details of any severance package are not yet known, but former City minister Lord Myners suggests it could add up to £20m-£30m. "I think his resignation letter is drafted with an eye to that [pay-off], because he admits no guilt on his part at all," the Labour peer told BBC News. "The shareholders of Barclays will be expecting the board to ensure that not a penny more is paid to Bob Diamond than that to which he is legally entitled," he said. US-born Mr Diamond was head of Barclays Capital, its investment bank division, when its staff were trying to manipulate the key inter-bank rates. "He maintains that he didn't know what was going on," says Robert Peston. Investigations are continuing in the UK and the US into other banks over Libor fixing, including criminal investigations by the Department of Justice. The Serious Fraud Office in the UK is looking into possible criminal prosecutions.

Libor scandal: Bob Diamond resigns as Barclays chief executive | Daily Mail Online Barclays board begins fight to claw back Bob Diamond's £22.9m share package as it's revealed Mervyn King 'gave him final push' Memo from Barclays implies Bank of England knew about Libor-rigging scam Bank of England governor and Financial Services Authority put pressure on bank to force the chief-executive out, it is claimed Mr Diamond to appear before Treasury Select Committee tomorrow Barclays banker Jerry del Missier ordered staff to lower the Libor rate after misunderstanding instructions from Mr Diamond Barclays chairman Marcus Agius says he has known about Libor fixing for the last TWO years Mr Agius says Mr Diamond, 60, resigned after 'something snapped' last night Mr del Missier, the chief operating officer, also resigns from bank Shareholders will attempt to claw back 13.2million shares owned by Mr Diamond - leaving him with 'just' a year's salary worth £1.35m Barclays share price falls 0.8% today following developments to 167p MPs will vote tomorrow on plans to set up a full judge-led inquiry into the bank rate-rigging scandal Barclays former exec testifies on market fixing Barclays former exec test

ifies on market fixing ROBERT BARR Share View photos Former Barclays Bank Chief Operating Officer Jerry del Missier arrives to give evidence on interbank rates fixing to the Treasury Select Committee at Portcullis House in London, Monday, July 16, 2012.(AP Photo/Sang Tan) More LONDON (AP) — A former top Barclays executive admitted ordering staff to submit false interest rates during the credit crisis in 2008 because he believed his action had been sanctioned by the Bank of England.

Jerry del Missier told the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee on Monday that he drew that conclusion from a conversation with the bank's chief executive, Bob Diamond in October 2008. He insisted that he believed he had done nothing wrong, and said he would not have given the order if he believed it had not been sanctioned by the Bank of England. Del Missier resigned as Barclays' chief operating officer on July 3, hours after Diamond resigned — a month after he had been promoted from head of Barclays Capital to chief operating officer of the group. Barclays has been fined $453 million by U.S. and British agencies for submitting false reports of its interbank borrowing rates, data which goes into the calculation of a key market index, the London interbank offered rate (LIBOR). In his evidence to the committee on July 4, Diamond said that del Missier had misunderstood a memo dated October 30 2008 written by Diamond following a conversation with Paul Tucker, a senior figure at the Bank of England regarding Barclays' LIBOR submissions.

Diamond's memo said that "that while he (Tucker) was certain we did not need advice, that it did not always need to be the case that we appeared as high as we have recently." Del Missier, however, said his understanding of what action to take came from a conversation he had had with Diamond before seeing the memo. "I only know what I clearly recall from my conversation with Mr. Diamond," he said. Tucker, now a deputy governor of the central bank, has denied giving Barclays any encouragement to submit false rates. Diamond said he didn't believe Tucker had sanctioned false submissions, and said he had not given that impression to del Missier. "I passed the instruction as I had received it on to the head of the money markets desk," del Missier told the committee. "I relayed the contents of the conversation that I had had with Mr. Diamond, and fully expected that the Bank of England's views would be incorporated in the LIBOR submissions." Del Missier said he thought the order he gave was "appropriate given everything that was going on," but said he had not bothered to check whether it had been carried out.

"The entire financial system was hanging in the balance and in the grand scheme of everything that was going on, it didn't seem a significant event, given the number of significant events that were transpiring at that time." Del Missier said that the LIBOR rate at the time was "hugely, hugely subjective." Other witnesses have said that there was very little interbank borrowing going on, either because banks were well capitalized or had just been bailed out by the government. "The Bank of England, as the institution that is responsible for the stability of the system and has the expertise and visibility across the entire market, I mean, their views are extremely relevant here." The false rates reported at this time were only part of the investigation. Investigators also found that individual traders at Barclays had persuaded colleagues to submit false rates in the hope of manipulating LIBOR to their advantage. Reblog Barclays, JPMorgan Chase have many woes - SFGate Barclays, JPMorgan Chase have many woes ENERGY MARKETS Both involved in manipulation probes by U.S., British governments Andrew S.

Ross, Chronicle Columnist Published 4:52 pm, Tuesday, July 3, 2012 Photo: Chris Ratcliffe, Bloomberg Close Image 1 of 3 A logo sits above the entrance to the Barclays Plc headquarters in the Canary Wharf business district of London, U.K., on Tuesday, July 3, 2012. Robert "Bob" Diamond, the architect of Barclays Plc's investment banking expansion, resigned as chief executive officer, succumbing to political pressure to go after the bank admitted to rigging global interest rates. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg less A logo sits above the entrance to the Barclays Plc headquarters in the Canary Wharf business district of London, U.K., on Tuesday, July 3, 2012. Robert "Bob" Diamond, the architect of Barclays Plc's investment ...

more Photo: Chris Ratcliffe, Bloomberg Image 2 of 3 A combination of pictures shows on July 3, 2012, Barclays Bank Chairman Marcus Agius, (L) former Barclays Bank Chief Executive Bob Diamond (C) and former Barclays Bank Chief Operating Officer Jerry Del Missier, (R) all of whom have resigned from the Bank in the last two days. Barclays on Tuesday said that its chief operating officer Jerry del Missier had become the latest high-profile executive to resign over a rate rigging scandal at the British banking giant. The move came hours after Diamond announced he was stepping down over an interbank loan rate scandal. Agius had announced he would quit on Monday. AFP PHOTO/STAFFSTAFF/AFP/GettyImages less A combination of pictures shows on July 3, 2012, Barclays Bank Chairman Marcus Agius, (L) former Barclays Bank Chief Executive Bob Diamond (C) and former Barclays Bank Chief Operating Officer Jerry Del Missier, ...

more Photo: Staff, AFP/Getty Images Image 3 of 3 JPMorgan Chase Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon testifies during a US House Financial Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, June 19, 2012, about JPMorgan Chase's trading loss. AFP PHOTO / Saul LOEBSAUL LOEB/AFP/GettyImages less JPMorgan Chase Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon testifies during a US House Financial Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, June 19, 2012, about JPMorgan Chase's trading loss. AFP PHOTO / ... more Photo: Saul Loeb, AFP/Getty Images Barclays, JPMorgan Chase have many woes 1 / 3 Back to Gallery On the same day that Barclays CEO Robert Diamond resigned in the wake of a price-fixing scandal involving the British bank , we learn the following: JPMorgan Chase is being investigated in connection with alleged energy market manipulation that raised electricity prices in California and the Midwest, and involved "at least $73 million in improper payments," according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission .

(Hello, Enron ?) We also learn JPMorgan has allegedly been profiting at the expense of its customers by manipulating the way it markets mutual funds - sometimes deceptively. Brokers were encouraged to "favor JPMorgan's own products even when competitors had better-performing or cheaper options," according to the New York Times . The newspaper reviewed bank documents and found in at least one case the bank exaggerated its returns in marketing materials. If that kind of ruse sounds vaguely familiar, Goldman Sachs did something similar, selling unsuspecting clients subprime mortgage-backed securities chosen by a hedge fund manager who was shorting the same securities. Goldman Sachs was fined $550 million - a record - by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2010, and told to "reform its business practices." CEO Lloyd Blankfein and his senior executives remain at the helm. One lower-level vice president is reportedly still under investigation. Barclays was fined $453 million last week in connection with its manipulation of the London interbank offered rate (Libor). In addition to Diamond, the bank's chief operating officer was also forced to resign Tuesday, and its chairman has said he would step down as soon as a replacement was found.

Clearly, for the British, enough was enough. At what point, in the never-ending parade of financial misdeeds, will the same apply here? So far, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon , "President Obama's favorite banker," has been blissfully untouched. Meanwhile, his bank has had to contribute to the $26 billion nationwide settlement of widespread abuses connected to the housing debacle, and is still attempting to unravel the multibillion trading loss involving the bank's "London whale." As for the energy market manipulation, a spokesman said Monday, "We believe we have complied in all respects with the law, as well as FERC rules and applicable tariffs, governing this market." We'll see. Interestingly, among the other banks FERC has cited for alleged violations in the affair is Barclays. And among the other banks reportedly being probed by U.S. and British regulators in connection with the Libor affair is JPMorgan. At some point, Robert Diamond and Jamie Dimon could have plenty to talk about. Getting the job done: Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom has taken a hammering of late for not spending much time in the state capital. ("It's just so dull ... sadly, I just, ugh, God...").

However, Newsom seems to have brought his office to bear effectively in getting a patent office for the Silicon Valley. "He helped make sure California got one," said Carl Guardino , CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group. "He worked very hard, especially with the Commerce Department and the White House." Getting a patent office had been one of the key items of a jobs and growth plan for California presented by Newsom in July 2011 - a plan that was, shall we say, sidetracked by Gov. Jerry Brown , who brought such issues under the purview of his own office. In January, Newsom hand carried a letter to the head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Alexandria, Va., in which he noted that California leads the nation in patents granted, has a huge number of backlogged applications and possesses "a constant pipeline of human capital to staff a satellite office." Newsom followed that up with visits to Washington, including meetings with then-Commerce Secretary John Bryson and officials in the White House. "I had to be agnostic about the location," said the former mayor of San Francisco, who helped get legislators on both sides of the aisle in Sacramento to support the cause.

"For me, this was an example of the state not resting on its laurels, not taking things for granted. Often, we haven't bothered to make the case for our own importance, assuming it should be self-evident. But the world has changed," he said. "It's good to see California assert itself." And good to know Newsom's office can be worth more than what FDR's vice president once referred to as bucket of you-know-what. Getting with the program: If the president of the United States can support same-sex marriage and Anderson Cooper can openly declare his sexual orientation, then San Francisco's Esurance shouldn't get much blowback by giving auto insurance discounts to same-sex partners, the same as it does for married heterosexual couples. The online affiliate of Allstate Insurance announced this week that it is extending the privilege to committed same-sex partners in every state in which it does business. They include Mississippi, Texas, Utah, Alabama and South Carolina. (You see where I'm going with this.) Previously, only same-sex couples in California, the Pacific Northwest and Illinois could get the average 10 percent discount. "Esurance is firmly committed to recognizing and supporting diversity for its customers," says Esurance CEO Gary Tolman .

"Offering additional savings to consumers regardless of where individual states stand on the issue of same-sex marriage is another measure of those commitments." Right, who's next? Former Barclays exec admits false LIBOR submission Former Barclays exec admits false LIBOR submission Robert Barr, Associated Press Pin it Share Former Barclays Bank Chief Operating Officer Jerry del Missier arrives to give evidence on interbank rates fixing to the Treasury Select Committee at Portcullis House in London, Monday, July 16, 2012.(AP Photo/Sang Tan) More LONDON (AP) -- A former top Barclays executive admitted ordering staff to submit false interest rates during the credit crisis in 2008 because he believed his action had been sanctioned by the Bank of England. Jerry del Missier told the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee on Monday that he drew that conclusion from a conversation with the Barclays' chief executive, Bob Diamond, in October 2008. He insisted that he believed he had done nothing wrong, and said he would not have given the order if he believed it had not been sanctioned by the Bank of England. Del Missier resigned as Barclays' chief operating officer on July 3, hours after Diamond resigned.

Just a month earlier, del Missier had been promoted from head of Barclays Capital to chief operating officer of the group. Barclays has been fined $453 million by U.S. and British agencies for submitting false reports of its interbank borrowing rates, data which goes into the calculation of a key market index, the London interbank offered rate (LIBOR). In his evidence to the committee on July 4, Diamond said that del Missier had misunderstood a memo dated October 30, 2008, written by Diamond following a conversation with Paul Tucker, a senior figure at the Bank of England, regarding Barclays' LIBOR submissions. Diamond's memo said that "that while he (Tucker) was certain we did not need advice, that it did not always need to be the case that we appeared as high as we have recently." Del Missier, however, said his understanding of what action to take came from a conversation he had had with Diamond before seeing the memo. "I only know what I clearly recall from my conversation with Mr. Diamond," he said. Tucker, now a deputy governor of the central bank, has denied giving Barclays any encouragement to submit false rates.

Diamond said he didn't believe Tucker had sanctioned false submissions, and said he had not given that impression to del Missier. "I passed the instruction as I had received it on to the head of the money markets desk," del Missier told the committee. "I relayed the contents of the conversation that I had had with Mr. Diamond, and fully expected that the Bank of England's views would be incorporated in the LIBOR submissions." Del Missier said he thought the order he gave was "appropriate given everything that was going on," but said he had not bothered to check whether it had been carried out. "The entire financial system was hanging in the balance and in the grand scheme of everything that was going on, it didn't seem a significant event, given the number of significant events that were transpiring at that time." Del Missier said that the LIBOR rate at the time was "hugely, hugely subjective." Other witnesses have said that there was very little interbank borrowing going on, either because banks were well capitalized or had just been bailed out by the government.

"The Bank of England, as the institution that is responsible for the stability of the system and has the expertise and visibility across the entire market, I mean, their views are extremely relevant here," del Missier said. The false rates reported at this time were only part of the investigation. Investigators also found that individual traders at Barclays had persuaded colleagues to submit false rates in the hope of manipulating LIBOR to their advantage. Leaders of the Financial Services Authority later told the committee that they had serious concerns about Barclays. This led to a meeting with the bank's executives in February 2012 and an unprecedented letter to the chairman to underline those concerns. Andrew Bailey, the agency's No. 2 official, took issue with Diamond's claim that the regulator was specifically pleased with the tone set by himself and Barclays Finance Director Chris Lucas. "I did make a very clear point in my presentation that while we had a whole series of issues with them, I did not have evidence that Bob Diamond personally was involved," Bailey said. FSA chairman Adair Turner had written to Barclays in April 2012 complaining that the bank had "a tendency continually to seek advantage from complex structures or favorable regulatory interpretations." "There was sort of a culture of gaming.

Gaming us," Bailey told the committee. "And the regulator had had enough?" asked committee chairman Andrew Tyrie. "Yes," Bailey said. "And you were reading them the riot act?" "Yes," Bailey said. Turner said he discussed Diamond's position with bank chairman Marcus Agius on Friday, June 29, two days after the huge fine was announced. "I said to Marcus Agius that we were not saying that Bob Diamond had been found to be not 'fit and proper,' therefore we would not be giving a direction that he could not be CEO," Turner said. However, Turner said he told Agius that the Barclays board needed "to think seriously about the scale of change which Barclays had to make" and whether it could do so under Diamond's leadership. On the following Monday, Turner said he briefed Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England. "We both agreed that was the correct message to be putting forward," Turner said. Diamond resigned the following day.

Reblog Fallout at Barclays ahead of Libor probe | Business | Jamaica Gleaner Fallout at Barclays ahead of Libor probe Published:Wednesday | July 4, 2012 | 12:00 AM Previous Pause Next This undated file photo made available by Barclays Bank on Monday, July 2, 2012 shows the Chairman of United Kingdom-based Barclays bank, Marcus Agius, in London. - AP photos In this January 27, 2010 file photo, Bob Diamond, chief executive of Barclays, listens during a plenary session at the 40th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland. This Friday, January 25, 2008 file photo shows then President of Barclays Capital, United Kingdom, Jerry del Missier, speaking during a working session at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. 1 2 3 Barclays Chief Executive Bob Diamond quit his job Tuesday, the biggest scalp in a financial markets scandal that has also seen the chairman announce his intention to resign and sown the seeds for another investigation into Britain's banking sector.

Jerry del Missier, appointed only last month as chief operating officer at the bank, resigned hours after Diamond left. The resignations, which took effect immediately, come a day after Chairman Marcus Agius fell on his sword, too. However, Agius will leave the company only after a new chairman is found and will lead the search for a new chief executive. He will take on Diamond's responsibilities until a new CEO is appointed. Barclays' management has come under fire since the bank was fined US$453 million last week by US and British regulators for submitting false reports on interbank borrowing rates between 2005 and 2009. Much of that activity originated from traders in Barclays Capital, the investment banking division which Diamond headed at the time. "The external pressure placed on Barclays has reached a level that risks damaging the franchise - I cannot let that happen," Diamond said Tuesday in the statement accompanying his resignation. "I am deeply disappointed that the impression created by the events announced last week about what Barclays and its people stand for could not be further from the truth." Britain's Serious Fraud Office said Monday that it would decide within a month whether to pursue criminal charges in the case.

Investigating committee The government, which has come under pressure to initiate a judge-led inquiry into the sector, also announced a parliamentary committee to investigate what went on and report by the end of the year. Barclays' share price was up 1.2 per cent at £1.704 in mid-afternoon London trading, retreating from earlier highs. "Although Diamond's resignation should take some of the ferocity out of the intense criticism heaped on Barclays there is little doubt that the risk of holding the stock has risen substantially in recent days," said Nic Clarke, an analyst at Charles Stanley. "A cloud is likely to hang over the stock until a suitable successor is chosen." As well as facing intense media pressure over the past few days, Diamond has seen growing calls for his resignation from the political world. Both Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg and opposition Labour Party leader Ed Miliband had called for Diamond, a 60-year-old American, to stand down. "I think it is the right decision for Barclays, I think it is the right decision for the country," said George Osborne, Britain's Treasury chief. Full-time chairman The bank said Agius, 65, would become full-time executive chairman until a new CEO is appointed.

"Clearly there's a lot more to come from this story right across the sector, but that's a significant scalp to be taken at this stage and now leaves a looming succession issue for the bank," said Mike McCudden, head of derivatives at Interactive Investor. Some analysts had thought Diamond's position was secure because there was no obvious successor in the wings. Diamond said he still intended to face the House of Commons Treasury Committee today, Wednesday, to give the bank's explanation for the false interest rate reports. Barclays is one of a number of banks which regularly submit estimates of what it will cost them to borrow from other banks. These estimates feed into a calculation of the London interbank offered rate (Libor) which is used to determine payments from a range of financial contracts. The London rate and the related European interbank offered rate (Euribor) are the benchmarks for over US$500 trillion in global contracts, including loans and mortgages. Barclays admitted that it had submitted lower than actual figures on its interbank borrowing during the credit crisis in 2007 and 2008. Several other global banks are being investigated in other countries for similar actions.

Scotland said it was conducting a criminal investigation of the banking sector, without specifying which companies. Last week, Diamond announced that he, del Missier, Barclays Capital chief Rich Ricci and Group Finance Director Chris Lucas were waiving any bonuses for 2012, accepting their responsibility because of the rate scandal. The financial terms of Diamond's departure were not immediately disclosed. Despite the growing calls for him to step down, Diamond's resignation came as a surprise. On Monday, he sounded like a man determined to keep his job. In a memo to staff, he said he was disappointed by the misbehaviour which led to the massive fines, but said: "It is my responsibility to make sure that it cannot happen again." Diamond built up Barclays Capital into a profit-spinning powerhouse, and scored an important coup during the financial crisis by buying the remains of Lehman Brothers' US operations in a US$1.35 billion deal. Barclays survived the credit crisis without resorting to the kind of taxpayer bailout which saved Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland, relying instead on an injection of capital from Qatar Holding, the government-backed investment fund.

In January last year, Diamond memorably told a House of Commons committee: "There was a period of remorse and apology for banks. I think that period is over." Del Missier, 50, a native of Canada, had been co-chief executive with Ricci in running Barclays Capital after Diamond moved up to CEO. Del Missier joined Barclays in 1997, and was appointed to the newly created role of chief operating officer on June 22. He gave no reason for his departure in the statement released by the bank. - AP LIBOR scandal: Barclays’ Jerry del Missier says he believed Bank of England approved false lower LIBOR submissions | Toronto Star Business LIBOR scandal: Barclays’ Jerry del Missier says he believed Bank of England approved false lower LIBOR submissions Former Barclays executive Jerry del Missier told a UK parliamentary committee on Monday that he believed he had done nothing wrong by instructing staff to submit false lower interest rate submissions. Former Barclays Bank Chief Operating Officer Jerry del Missier arrives to give evidence on interbank rates fixing to the Treasury Select Committee at Portcullis House in London, Monday, July 16, 2012.

(AP Photo/Sang Tan) (Sang Tan / AP) By Madhavi Acharya-Tom YewBusiness Reporter Mon., July 16, 2012 A former executive of Barclays who told subordinates to submit false interest rates in 2008 says he believed his action had been sanctioned by the Bank of England. Jerry del Missier told a parliamentary committee on Monday that he drew that conclusion from a conversation with the bank's chief executive, Bob Diamond. Del Missier, former chief operating officer, said he acted on instructions from his boss and did not see anything wrong with what he was doing. “At the time it did not seem an inappropriate action given that this was coming from the Bank of England,” del Missier told the members of British parliament. “The entire financial system was hanging in the balance and in the grand scheme of everything that was going on, it didn’t seem a significant event, given the number of significant events that were transpiring at that time,” he said at one point during his testimony. Article Continued Below The explosive evidence directly contradicts statements by Diamond and Paul Tucker, then a senior official at the Bank of England. “It’s getting murkier and murkier. The scandal is becoming more complex.

Now you have the No. 2 guy saying we low-balled for sure, under the explicit orders of Mr. Diamond, and the CEO, who told us he was doing it because Mr. Tucker wanted that,” said Ian Lee, assistant professor of strategic management and international business at the Sprott School of Business at Carleton University. More: Del Missier: The scandal’s key Canadian figure It also comes as governments in Canada, the U.S. and even Puerto Rico are moving to take action against Barclays and the other 20 or so banks that are responsible for setting the London interbank offered rate, known as LIBOR. Barclays has been fined $453 million (U.S.) by U.S. and British agencies for submitting false reports of its interbank borrowing rates, data which goes into the calculation of LIBOR. In turn, LIBOR is the benchmark for dozens of other lending rates in different countries and in different currencies. After the collapse of U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers in September, 2008, central banks were bracing for a global meltdown of the financial system. “There was wrong-doing, no question about it,” Lee said, referring to Barclays.

“But if the Bank of England was complicit – and I’m not saying they were – I don’t believe they were doing it to make money. I believe it would have been to prevent a systemic meltdown.” Del Missier resigned as Barclays' chief operating officer on July 3, hours after Diamond resigned. The testimony comes as Canada’s Competition Bureau embarks on its own investigation. “I can confirm that the Competition Bureau is currently investigating alleged collusive conduct into the setting of Yen LIBOR rates,” Greg Scott, a spokesperson for the Competition Bureau said in an email. “As this matter is before the courts and the Bureau’s investigation is ongoing, I am unable to comment further.” The Canadian branch of the Royal Bank of Scotland, which is named in the Competition Bureau court filing, has filed its own court challenge on the grounds that the Canadian government agency is well beyond the scope of its mandate. There is no indication by the Competition Bureau that any wrong-doing took place in Canada. Late yesterday, the Ontario Securities Commission, Canada’s main securities regulator, also said it’s “engaged” on issues relating to the setting of benchmark reference rates by banks including the Canadian dealer offered rate.

“We’re engaged in this issue and are co-ordinating our efforts with our regulatory partners, both internationally and domestically, as appropriate,” Tom Atkinson, director of enforcement, said Monday in an e-mailed statement. The attorneys general of New York and Connecticut are also conducting an investigation tied to alleged manipulation of LIBOR. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen are working together in the probe, James Freedland, a Schneiderman spokesman, said in an e-mail to Bloomberg News Monday. As well, Puerto Rico has lawyers looking at possible legal claims from the suspected manipulation by global banks of LIBOR. With about $68 billion (U.S.) of outstanding municipal bonds, the U.S. commonwealth is a prominent issuer of U.S. tax free debt and has variable-rate debt tied to the London interbank offering rate, according to Juan Carlos Batlle, president of the Government Development Bank for Puerto Rico. “We are asking counsel to make an evaluation, and we won't know how much exactly for another week or two,” Batlle told Reuters. “For us, there is no downside. There is some potential upside in claims.” With files from Star wire services

Question: Who was the chief executive of Barclays bank who resigned in July 2012 after Barclays had been severely fined for fixing LIBOR rates ?
Answer: BOB DIAMOND