Five banks - including HSBC and RBS - fined £2bn over exchange rate 'manipulation'

Britain’s biggest banks face calls to cancel hundreds of millions of pounds in bonuses this year as they finalise the multibillion pound settlement.

16:23 12 November 2014

Two of Britain’s biggest banks (HSBC and Royal Bank of Scotland) have been fined £2bn alongside three other over their exchange rate 'manipulation.’

 

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is set to levy aggregate penalties with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission imposing fines of a similar figure.

 

The settlements are expected to be announced later. 

 

The penalties will be the largest ever imposed by the FCA. 

 

JP Morgan, Citigroup, and UBS are expected to participate in the settlement with FCA and CFTC. Meanwhile, Swiss competition authorities are set to fine UBS and US regulators while handing out a separate fine to Bank of America for its role in the global scandal. 

 

Robert Talbut, chief investment officer at Royal London Asset Management, said banks would have to make bonus decisions early next year in the light of the settlements.

 

"It will be essential that fines of this nature are taken account of in any bonus pool decisions for 2015.”