Bloomberg reports that Barclays' decision to cooperate with regulators before its competitors in exchange for more lenient treatment has backfired, analysts and investors say.
'They had a difficult tactical and regulatory decision to make, and they have paid the first-mover penalty', said Owen Watkins, a former regulator with the U.K. Financial Services Authority who is now a lawyer at Lewis Silkin LLP in London. 'Effectively, they were cooperating in putting their heads in the noose'.
CEO Robert Diamond, under pressure from policy makers and investors, resigned yesterday after the bank was fined a record $451m last week for rigging Libor as well as Euribor, its equivalent in euros, starting as early as 2005.
By cooperating with regulators Barclays’s managers tried to end the issue quickly and move on, said a company executive, who declined to be named because the talks were private. They expected investors would react positively after the bank successfully negotiated a reduction in fines.
Hit the link below to access the complete Bloomberg article:
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