London - The UK Financial Conduct Authority has re-opened
its investigation into Barclays' 2008 emergency fundraising from Qatar
despite issuing a fine in the case four years ago, as charging decisions from a
parallel criminal case are set to be announced imminently, according to a
person familiar with the probe.
The FCA called in a number of people for interviews in
the case in recent weeks, said the person who asked not to identified because
the process is private. The UK regulator already fined Barclays 50 million
pounds ($62 million) over the fundraising in 2013. The bank said it will
contest the penalty but the challenge was put on hold pending the outcome of
criminal probe by the UK Serious Fraud Office.
The investigations target two "advisory services
agreements" worth 322 million pounds that Barclays committed to pay the
Qatar Investment Authority during the 2008 financial crisis. The pacts came
around the same time the sovereign wealth fund joined a two-stage 12
billion-pound fundraising to help the bank avoid a state bailout, raising
questions about the true purpose of the services agreements.
Spokesmen for the FCA and Barclays declined to comment.
The FCA’s decision to re-open its case was first reported by the Financial
Times on Thursday.
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The FCA’s decision to re-open its case comes after
Barclays turned over about 100 000 new documents to the SFO last year after
dropping a claim the material was covered by attorney-client privilege, the
person said. If the FCA wanted to alter its previous penalty report-- known as
a warning notice-- substantially, or issue a new one, it would have to get
sign-off from the Regulatory Decisions Committee. The RDC is an independent
internal panel that must approve enforcement action before its issued.
The SFO plans to announce any charges in the coming
weeks. At least eight former senior Barclays individuals have been interviewed
under caution by the prosecutor in the probe including former Chief Executive
Officers John Varley and Bob Diamond. Interviews under caution are generally
conducted with possible suspects and anything said can be used in court.
A number of those individuals have sent final pleas to
the SFO in recent weeks outlining why they shouldn’t face charges, people with
knowledge of the case told Bloomberg last week. The SFO told a London court
last year that it would decide on charges by the end of March, and the
prosecutor is on track to make an announcement around then, three of the people
said.
The FCA also issued so-called preliminary investigation
reports to a number of ex-Barclays executives a few years ago, people with
knowledge of the case said previously. PIRs are the first stage of the
enforcement process, outlining the regulator’s findings for the individual to
respond to. They are usually followed by a formal notice of enforcement action,
which often includes a fine.