Supreme Court overturns convictions of traders

Two traders convicted of interest rate manipulation have their convictions reversed by the Supreme Court.

Traders jailed for interest rate rigging have their convictions cleared

The Supreme Court has overturned the convictions of two traders, Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, who were imprisoned for manipulating benchmark interest rates. Hayes received a 14-year sentence in 2015 for his role in the Libor scandal, while Palombo was sentenced to four years in 2019 for rigging Euribor rates. Their appeals were allowed as the court found that errors in jury directions during their trials made the convictions unsafe. The Serious Fraud Office, which originally brought the cases, has stated it will not seek retrials. Both men maintained their innocence, arguing that their actions were condoned within the industry at the time.

This landmark Supreme Court decision has significant implications for financial regulation and the prosecution of white-collar crime. By quashing the convictions, the court questions how financial institutions interpret compliance and accountability. It raises broader issues about the enforcement of laws relating to complex financial instruments and whether such prosecutions can uphold the principles of fairness and justice. The reversal may lead to increased scrutiny of how financial practices are assessed in future cases and affect the direction of regulatory policies surrounding benchmarks like Libor and Euribor.

Highlights

The implications of this ruling extend beyond these cases, raising questions about accountability in financial markets.