27.06.2012
By Simon Miller
Barclays' chief executive Bob Diamond is to hand back his 2012 bonuses after the bank was fined for misconduct in relation to the London Interbank Offered Rate (Libor) and the Euro Interbank Offered Rate (Euribor).
Diamond and three other senior managers will hand back their bonuses after the FSA issued its largest ever fine of £59.5m for misconduct and the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) handed Barclays a $200m (£128m) penalty for "attempted manipulation of and false reporting concerning Libor and Euribor benchmark interest rates", while the bank agreed to pay a $160m penalty as part of an agreement with the US Justice Department.
"The events which gave rise to today's resolutions relate to past actions which fell well short of the standards to which Barclays aspires in the conduct of its business," said Diamond in a statement. "When we identified those issues, we took prompt action to fix them and co-operated extensively and proactively with the authorities."
He continued: "Nothing is more important to me than having a strong culture at Barclays; I am sorry that some people acted in a manner not consistent with our culture and values. To reflect our collective responsibility as leaders, Chris Lucas, Jerry del Missier, Rich Ricci and I have voluntarily agreed with the Board to forgo any consideration for an annual bonus this year."
The CFTC found that "Barclays attempted to manipulate and made false reports concerning two global benchmark interest rates, Libor and Euribor, on numerous occasions and sometimes on a daily basis over a four-year period, commencing as early as 2005".
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