Bankers ...

[Martin75]

The alleged byzantine conniptions of the bankers to coalesce and fix the 'Liebor' interbank exchange rate, continue to unravel. If proven, should legislation be changed to fix fines at suitable levels (billions) rather than the gnat bite amounts currently handed down - or is the punishment of law suit settlement sufficient?

Should directors of these institutions, be liable to imprisonment, for allowance of such acts - regardless of denial and replace token 'comfort resignations ' with a more robust exchange of circumstance?

[Greeners]

Bang the lot of them up, bread and water

[windrush]

This seems to be the trouble with the whole world these days GREED

[whitevanman]

Something I jotted on my FB page yesterday

Imagine the phone calls.........
A few years ago......

Hello is that Fred? hi it's Bob here well it's about these Liebor rates, yeah well I was thinking....Oh you were too and the others... well yes we have to think of the bonuses, Island next to Richards you say Hmmm nice I was thinking another dozen Bentleys or something, so shall we say a conversation the month before to sort it out, yes thats what i thought. 3.8% for now hmmm how about 3.95? ok 3.95% it is then talk soon, bye.

And so it goes on until

Hello Fred, that ****er from the FSA has done me for £290m....!!! what you had dinner with him the other week at the Groucho? strange place.... oh I see wanted to get some practice in before another review, nice touch, and he stayed on your island for free Huh huh and he spotted one just down the coast and fancied a bit of the pie for himself, well if he'd just asked i'm sure we could have sor...I see so he wants a bigger island than you...Thats torn it then...Got any room on your island? coz I think we might need it for a few of the boys!!

Bankers just one letter from the truth

[wraymond]

Have to confess to a certain curiosity. People at the so-called ‘top’ being paid (the word ‘earned’ sticks in my typing finger) obscene money. One on 27 million last year, are alleged to be in charge of (and that means responsible for) others with whom they collude in perpetuating a fraud on masses of the public and many institutions. There is no need to have to include a precautionary ‘alleged’, the bank concerned has been fined £290 million pounds. Not by a court you notice, that then would be a criminal matter and it would never do to prejudice Justice now would it. So that’s that then. They done it. Bang to rights, fingers in the till. The boss thinks all he has to do is not accept his 7 million bonus and we carry on in the same old way.


Qu.1. Why have all the institutions that have all those shares that have
now taken a dive, kept quiet? After all, they have their clients’
money (‘our’ pension funds) actually invested with these crooks.
Don’t they hold a fiduciary duty? Or couldn’t they give a stuff? All
in it together?

Qu.2. How is it that these crooks can pull stunts like this and at some
stage down the line, and before the cops feel their collars, they are
allowed to ’resign’, collect their massive severance settlement and
retain their huge pension package?
And then go and do their thing at another bank?

Qu.3. Why haven’t they been arrested already? If one of their cashiers
had been caught with sticky fingers to the tune of £100, they would
have been. And had to forfeit their entire pension. And gone to jail.

Qu.4. Why have we got the FSA (Financial Services Authority)?


Qu.5. Why is Mervyn King so holier-than-thou? He’s got the most senior
bank job in the country. Are we to believe he didn’t even suspect?

Qu.6 .Oh, all right then , I’ll stop now with the questions

Mervyn apparently holds strong views on the subject. Really? Well, strong views weakly held are all too easily altered to strong views weekly changed. And where is our dashing, valiant PM? Or cherubic Chancellor? Curious….. Sorry, went back to the questions again then.


　
acknowledgements: AJP Taylor.

[trebor]

Apparently it came to light through certain e mails exchanged between the wan sorry i mean bankers.

So just what governance is in place to fully audit these institutions, how come somebody didnt spot something wrong with the rate by examining business records and the like.

I think heads should roll, ill take me knitting

[shadowfax]

Qu.1. Why have all the institutions that have all those shares that have
now taken a dive, kept quiet? After all, they have their clients’
money (‘our’ pension funds) actually invested with these crooks.
Don’t they hold a fiduciary duty? Or couldn’t they give a stuff? All
in it together?
The bigger institutions i.e..the pension fund managers rely more in the dividend payout rather than the share price, they also hold on to the shares generally for much longer periods, that your comment pretty much becomes a mute point. Last figure I heard(long time ago but serves as example) was the PRU had 200m of shares in a particular bank that they only effectively paid 25p for before a certain banks shares wore split. value now = just under £2.

Qu.2. How is it that these crooks can pull stunts like this and at some
stage down the line, and before the cops feel their collars, they are
allowed to ’resign’, collect their massive severance settlement and
retain their huge pension package?
And then go and do their thing at another bank?

Who was working where when the incidents occured

Qu.3. Why haven’t they been arrested already? If one of their cashiers
had been caught with sticky fingers to the tune of £100, they would
have been. And had to forfeit their entire pension. And gone to jail.
IT Was manipulation!??! not necessarily fraud in the eyes of some. THAT said, if anyone looks into POCA - the Proceeds of Crime Act, it makes very onteresting reading. Arrests under this if it was pushed would be hard to avoid.

Qu.4. Why have we got the FSA (Financial Services Authority)?

TO PROTECT YOU! not wholesale banking. The RETAIL arms of all the banks are regulated CONSIDERABLY more than that of wholesale banking - If the wholesale market was regulated in a similar fashion, this would not have happened.


Qu.5. Why is Mervyn King so holier-than-thou? He’s got the most senior
bank job in the country. Are we to believe he didn’t even suspect?
No WAY he would know.

DOES ANYONE KNOW that the Bank in question here SELF REPORTED THE ISSUE ONCE DISCOVERED!!! dosent seem to have been reported much.

Qu.6 .Oh, all right then , I’ll stop now with the questions no there are LOADS more

[Scribbler.]

Sadly the whole damned system is corrupted from the top down; this includes our MP's, Bankers, the housing market etc, you name it they're all at the same trough.
Name and shame, recoup all proceeds under the `illegal proceeds' umbrella and have a public trial of all involved with extremely heavy penalties. After all many businesses failed as a direct result.... families split, homes lost etc. When the HECK will british people take action???
Ok I know yet more apathy. Our so called deficite would be massively reduced if the tax avoidance loopholes were closed NOW; however the reality is ... those in power have most to lose and they're making the rules. I see if Mr. Diamond is sacked he gets a handshake of 27. million GBP. Bankers are proven to be pondlife. Mike. .... come the revolution .....

[Martin75]

Originally Posted by wraymond

There is no need to have to include a precautionary ‘alleged’, the bank concerned has been fined £290 million pounds.

The word 'alleged' was included for three considerations...

1) It's the plural of banker, (thread title) and so far guilt has only been established against Barclays, so I wanted the innocent to be protected.

2) Without caveat, it might be considered as a depreciative, political, or racist statement, encouraging others to publicly stone bankers to death and thereby contravene rule 15.

3) I wanted to be cautious, knowing bankers are well respected, as so far we've given them £30,000 of our own money each, to get over their little problems. Also I know our readers are altruistic, objective thinking altruists.

Unfortunately Banks are like sewers, both stink but are necessary for civilisation.

Lets not be negative, look on the bright side,

Bob the 'Diamond' geezer has suddenly declined his £3.4 million bonus. What an act of social conscience, Well done Bob.

A real sacrifice for a man with a menial salary of £1.4 million, and now relying on his savings from the £25 million he's worked hard for these past three years. Be reasonable, how can poor Bob manage to run his Learjet following such self-denial?

If we’re not careful and treat him properly - he'll leave us forever and return to the 'Land of the Free!

[wraymond]

Shadowfax: post 7
FSA.
I was regulated by FSA from it's inception. It is my belief that it oversees
on behalf of the public's financial dealings with the institutions and is required to regulate over the institutions insofar as the law is concerned. It has no true legal force, only to report to government any breaches of the law as it sees fit and to hold to account. These activities come under their remit. It is seen as largely ineffective as members are recruited from, guess where?

Dividend payout...
Realated to: number of shares held x share price growth. The only winners are the brokers who make sure their fees are paid at the start rather than when their recommendations mature! One of the reasons why members of the public holding stock are seen as fair game, they have not got a chance. Just about anyone can go to an antiques auction, buy some pieces, and resell them at a considerably greater profit than virtually any share price over a one year period! (I'm not talking about those stupid TV shows and the junk they push). Long term? Works even better.

Who was working where....
Not sure of the point.

Not necessarily fraud...
Only in the eyes of the fraudster. To deliberately overstate or manipulate the value of a tradeable asset for financial or material advantage = fraud I think.

I read to day, in an impeccable source, no, not the Daily Mail, that all this was reported by a particular bank to the FSA, Government, and BoE over a year ago! Nothing done! So they are all in it! Where have we heard that before?

Martin: well done post 9! I bet the diamond geezer uses that when questioned this week!