The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Wednesday it has provisionally found that five major banks illegally shared in chatrooms competitively sensitive information related to details on pricing and trading strategies between 2009-2013
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th May, 2023) The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Wednesday it has provisionally found that five major banks illegally shared in chatrooms competitively sensitive information related to details on pricing and trading strategies between 2009-2013.
"The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has provisionally found that 5 major banks - Citi, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and Royal Bank of Canada - each unlawfully shared competitively sensitive information by participating in one or more series of one-to-one conversations in chatrooms. The alleged behaviour took place at varying times between 2009 and 2013," the statement read.
CMA also said that the information exchanges had taken place in "one-to-one Bloomberg chatrooms" between a small number of traders who worked at the banks and was "related to the buying and selling of UK government bonds � specifically, gilts and gilt asset swaps."
The exchanges included details on pricing and trading strategies, the authority added.
"The CMA's probe is ongoing and if the CMA reaches a final conclusion that any 2 or more of the banks engaged in anti-competitive activity, the CMA will publish an infringement decision and may issue fines," the statement read.
The document added that the banks denied the full benefits of competition to those they traded with, including, among others, pension funds, the UK Debt Management Office, the King's Treasury and UK taxpayers.
