UK Banking facing Judicial enquiry

http://www.foxbusiness.com/business-leaders/2012/12/11/uk-makes-three-arrests-in-libor-probe/?intcmp=obnetwork

Britain's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has made the first arrests as part of a global investigation into the manipulation of interbank lending rates.

See today's fine on HSBC by the Yanks?

Assuming the States regulators can substantiate the accusation, and £1.5 billion fine, then they deserve this outcome.
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It's good to be back amongst friends and colleagues

Internal emails substantiated the charges and I still want criminal prosecution. Relative to the size of the bank the fines are small. The potential damages to your and my country are criminal felonies and deserve hard time.

Frankly they are too afraid of too big to fail institutions.

Frankly they are too afraid of too big to fail institutions.

It has to be realised that many pension funds invest in large companies in addition to Gilts. When a big one goes down the plughole it can have quite a large knock on effect to the general public apart from shareholders. Responsible governments and regulators are aware of all that. As a poster here always reminds us "I think you'll find it isn't as simple as that".

Gary, there are people in HSBC who aided countries and drug cartels who are overtly doing acts of war against the US. Those HSBC people belong in jail.

Yes, there were Americans involved on this side of the pond. I don't recall his name, but he was the chief operating officer over here. Emails exist showing him complaining to his boss in England and the response he got was the US was being too overbearing concerning money laundering and to shut up. As for US law HBSC in the settlement concedes US law does apply. Part of the settlement is that if the bank stays clean for 5 years no criminal charges will be brought.

Being part of a conspiracy is a crime!

Queen questions financial crisis

"When told that the officials in the room were there to prevent another crisis, the Duke jokingly asked: "Is there another one coming?""

Of course there'a another coming your highness, how else do you think we serfs are kept in line?
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Being part of a conspiracy is a crime!

Knowing about a crime or failing to report a crime is not the same as attempting to cover up a crime. You have to prove a specific act in furtherance of the crime to have a conspiracy. It is a fine point but an important one.

The guy who hears scuttlebutt at the water cooler isn't a conspirator. The guy who overhears crooks planning the next heist at the restaurant isn't a conspirator. The guy who brings maps to plan with is a conspirator.

Now if this COO certified they were in compliance and he knew it was false, that is a primary crime of perjury. But proving he knew it was false is proving his mental state when he signed. He may have suspected it was BS, but there is a difference between suspecting something and knowing it for a fact.

As you may gather actually proving these things is very hard without a confession or documentation of mental state, e.g. phone taps.

Gary, that is one spin being put out, another is the fear that criminal charges could bring down HSBC. As for evidence all they did not have is wire taps. They do have internal HBSC documentation and a confession. As it is going down the only penalties are to the share holders in the loss of the revenue going to pay the fine, the people who committed the money laundering will suffer no punishment. I fail to see how that will deter future crimes. This is a very sordid affair.

Sadly the bastards in the UK and elsewhere who helped finance mutual foes will suffer not.

Don't you Brits also have trade embargoes against Iran?