UBS faces $1 billion fine for Libor rigging
Department of Justice and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission all declined to comment.
UBS has said it set aside 6.5 billion swiss francs ($7.04 billion) in reserves, but has not broken out how those funds are earmarked.
CONDITIONAL LENIENCY
The steep fine that UBS has agreed to pay is a surprise because the bank, since 2011, has cooperated with law-enforcement agencies in their probes, according to regulatory filings and court documents.
The bank disclosed it received conditional immunity from the Justice Department's antitrust division and other international competition authorities, which suggests the bank's $1 billion payout could have been higher without that leniency.
Some clues to UBS's alleged central role in the Libor conspiracy were included in documents filed earlier this year by the Canadian Competition Bureau, which investigates anti-competitive activity.
The documents describe how a "cooperating party" tried to artificially move yen Libor. UBS is the cooperating bank, people familiar with the situation have said. Those documents allege that a trader at the bank – called "Trader A" – contacted traders at four other banks. On one occasion, "Trader A" instructed a trader at another bank on what Libor submission to make.
It is unclear if UBS will resolve the Canadian probe as part of the imminent settlement.
Authorities are also investigating the actions of individuals. This week British police and anti-fraud officers made the first arrests in connection to the Libor probe, detaining a former trader and two other men, sources said. One of those arrested was
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