Deutsche, Merrill courted ex-Libor trader after Citi sacked him- court hears

From Reuters –

“Tom Hayes, the first trader to stand trial on alleged Libor rigging charges, was called by Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank about possible job offers after being fired by Citigroup for alleged interest rate rigging, a London court heard on Tuesday.

Prosecutors allege Hayes was motivated by greed when he set up a network of traders and brokers at some of the world's leading financial institutions and pressured others to move benchmark rates in directions that benefited his trading book.

Hayes, who worked for UBS as a derivatives trader in Tokyo until he was poached by Citigroup in 2009, has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of conspiracy to defraud.

Citigroup proceeded to fire him in 2010 but decided against exercising its right to demand repayment of a 2.22 million pound ($3.40 million) "special cash award" handed to Hayes when he joined in 2009, according to a letter shown to the court.”

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Alleged Libor ringleader motivated by greed, trial hears

From Reuters –

“Tom Hayes, a former trader on trial for allegedly conspiring to rig benchmark interest rates, has admitted to being motivated by greed and was fired by U.S. bank Citigroup in 2010, prosecutors told a London court on Tuesday.

Hayes is the first person to be prosecuted over manipulation of the London interbank offered rate (Libor) after a seven year, global inquiry that has led to banks and brokerages paying around $9 billion in fines and sparked an overhaul of how financial benchmarks such as Libor are policed.

Opening the case for the prosecuting, Serious Fraud Office (SFO) senior lawyer Mukul Chawla told the court that Hayes, 35, was at the centre of a conspiracy to rig Libor and had admitted during 82 hours of interviews with prosecutors that he had put his trading book and pay above other concerns.”

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