The headquarters of Barclays Bank, a skyscraper in Churchill Square, Canary Wharf, London, England, Thursday, January 7, 2021.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
UK financial watchdog fined barclays bank The bank said on Monday it had dropped its appeal in the case, in which it was fined 40 million pounds ($50.9 million) for failing to disclose a 2008 payment to a Qatari entity.
Barclays said it was not admitting wrongdoing but drawing a line under the pending case as regulators scrutinize how the bank received a lifeline from the Middle East at the height of the global financial crisis.
The Financial Conduct Authority fine dates back to the 2008 crisis, when Barclays scrambled to raise funds from overseas investors, including Qatar, to avoid a state bailout.
The FCA said in 2022 that the British bank paid an undisclosed fee to a Qatari fund involved in the rescue and found that Barclays acted recklessly and lacked integrity during the financing process.
The FCA fined Barclays £50 million at the time, which the bank appealed.
Barclays said in a statement on Monday that it did not accept the FCA’s findings but had withdrawn its appeal given “the amount of time that has passed since the incident”.
Barclays said the withdrawal was in the best interests of the bank, shareholders and other stakeholders, adding that the fine would not have a significant financial impact.
The British bank was due to appeal the FCA’s fine in a court case on Monday, with its former chief executive John Varley set to testify.
Steve Smart, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said: “The misconduct at Barclays was serious and meant investors were not given all the information they should have been given.”
“However, these events occurred 16 years ago and we recognize that Barclays is a very different organization today and have implemented changes across the business,” he said.
About The Author
