The European Commission has fined HSBC, Barclays, NatWest and Credit Suisse a total of €344m (£293m) for rigging foreign currency markets.
HSBC paid the biggest penalty of €174.3m followed by Credit Suisse with €83.3m. Barclays paid €54.3m and NatWest, previously called RBS, was hit with a €32.5m fine.
HSBC’s fine was reduced by 25%, NatWest’s was cut by 60% and Barclays got a 40% reduction for helping with the inquiry and admitting responsibility. The reductions reflected how helpful each bank was.
Credit Suisse received no reduction because it did not cooperate. UBS, which also took part in the cartel, avoided a €94m fine because it revealed the wrongdoing.
Traders from the banks shared information in a chatroom called Sterling Lads. They shared trading plans and sometimes coordinated trading strategies.
The information exchanges allowed them to make informed market decisions when trading leading currencies. Sometimes the traders would hold back from trading to avoid interfering with another trader.
Margrethe Vestager, the commissioner for competition policy, said: “Foreign exchange spot trading activities are one of the largest financial markets in the world. The collusive behaviour of the five banks undermined the integrity of the financial sector at the expense of the European economy and consumers”.
