Libor trial of six City brokers begins

Jurors heard that the six had nicknames like “big nose”, “Sarge” and “Lord Libor” and that evidence would be presented in the form of chats, phone calls and emails.

In 2012, Barclays PLC became the first bank to settle rate-rigging allegations with global authorities, sparking the resignation of top executives and leading to global regulatory reforms around market benchmarks.

This allowed Hayes to make millions of pounds for the banks he worked for, he said.

Opening the case for the prosecution, Muhul Chawla QC said all six defendants conspired with Mr Hayes and others and that they were “rewarded in various ways to corrupt the system”.

The Serious Fraud Office charged the men with a total of five counts of conspiracy to defraud by trying to move the rate linked to the Japanese yen. He is now appealing the verdict and a 14-year prison sentence.

The FT reported the jury was told that Hayes was found guilty of conspiracy to defraud and was the “central figure” who sought to manipulate the brokers.

The jury, made up of eight men and four women, was also told that the defendants did this “to assist a trader at a bank”.

The men, aged between 44 and 53, are the first brokers to be tried over alleged rigging of the London interbank offered rate (Libor), a benchmark for about $450 trillion of financial contracts worldwide, from complex derivatives to student loans.

The SFO, whose case will be led by veteran counsel Mukul Chawla, alleges the men dishonestly agreed to procure Libor rates that would benefit the trading of people such as Hayes, deliberately disregarding how rates should be set and prejudicing the economic interest of others.

He would then pay brokers for this help, which resulted in bonuses and salary top-up payments, the court was told. “The focus…is whether these alleged conspiracies existed, and whether these defendants, by doing what they did, were dishonest”.

In a brief description of each broker’s work history and responsibilities, Mr. Chawla referred to nicknames used by the defendants and their contacts, including Mr. Read’s moniker “Big Nose” and Mr. Goodman’s signoff on messages as “Lord Libor”.

He said it was “cheating” – “nothing more, nothing less”, adding: “There’s nothing magical about it. There’s nothing very hard about it”.

The trial, which is expected to last between 12 and 14 weeks, is being held at Southwark Crown Court in London.

The 12-member jury is tasked in part with determining whether each defendant in this new trial entered into a conspiracy with Hayes and others.