Barclays traders win Libor/Euribor appeal wins

What's happened

Former traders have had convictions overturned in a wave of appeals that followed Supreme Court rulings. The Court of Appeal quashed Libor/Euribor convictions for five Barclays traders; several others have won similar challenges as the SFO signals retrials for Hayes and Palombo may proceed.

What's behind the headline?

Brief:

• The Court of Appeal has overturned the convictions of five Barclays traders in Libor/Euribor manipulation cases, following earlier Supreme Court actions that overturned other convictions. The SFO did not contest these appeals. Bittar’s case remains contested.
• The broader context shows a shift in how UK courts view the reliability of jury directions in rate-rigging prosecutions, and it raises questions about the fairness of the earlier trials.

What this means for readers:

• Trust in benchmark rates has been further eroded, and regulatory scrutiny may intensify as retrials and appeals proceed.
• Shareholders and financial markets may reconsider risk pricing related to rate-based products as legal uncertainties persist.

Forecast:

• The SFO could face pressure to review other convictions that hinged on similar trial instructions. Retrials for Hayes and Palombo are unlikely in the near term, but new legal arguments may surface in related cases.

How we got here

The long-running Euribor/Libor scandal saw a number of bankers convicted in the 2016–2019 period. A 2025 Supreme Court ruling found misdirections in earlier trials, prompting fresh appeals. The Court of Appeal has now overturned the Barclays convictions, adding to a broader trend of reversals that began with the Hayes/Palombo decisions. Readers should understand the case spans multiple banks and jurisdictions and tied to benchmarks used globally.

Our analysis

The Guardian reports on the Barclays files with quotes from plaintiffs’ lawyers and SFO statements. BBC coverage emphasizes the impact on individuals and the broader Bank of England/regulators, while AP News frames it within the evidence pool and Supreme Court rulings. Bloomberg adds a concise note on the convictions affected. The synthesis shows a consistent legal shift, with officials cautioning on retrials and supporters arguing corrections are overdue.

Go deeper

• What impact will these reversals have on investors in funds tied to Euribor/Libor-indexed products?
• Could retrials be expected in other rate-rigging cases beyond Hayes/Palombo and the Barclays traders?
• How is the Bank of England responding to renewed scrutiny over central bank record-keeping?

More on these topics

• Barclays - Financial services company

  Barclays plc is a British multinational investment bank and financial services company, headquartered in London, England. Apart from investment banking, Barclays is organised into four core businesses: personal banking, corporate banking, wealth managemen

• Libor - London Inter-bank Offered Rate

  The London Inter-bank Offered Rate is an interest-rate average calculated from estimates submitted by the leading banks in London. Each bank estimates what it would be charged were it to borrow from other banks. The resulting average rate is usually abbre

• Deutsche Bank - Investment banking company

  Deutsche Bank AG is a multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed in New York Stock Exchange and Frankfurt Stock Exchange.

• Euribor - Euro interbank offered (interest) rate

  The Euro Interbank Offered Rate is a daily reference rate, published by the European Money Markets Institute, based on the averaged interest rates at which Eurozone banks borrow unsecured funds from counterparties in the euro wholesale money market.

• United Kingdom - Country in Europe

  The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country located off the north­western coast of the European mainland.

• London - Capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom

  London is the capital and largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of 9.1 million people in 2024. Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Western Europe, with a population of 15.1 million. London stands on the River...

• UBS - Investment banking company

  UBS Group AG is a Swiss multinational investment bank and financial services company founded and based in Switzerland. Co-headquartered in the cities of Zürich and Basel, it maintains a presence in all major financial centres as the largest Swiss banking

• Serious Fraud Office - Government department

  The Serious Fraud Office is a non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom that investigates and prosecutes serious or complex fraud and corruption in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

• Citigroup - Investment banking company

  Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational investment bank and financial services corporation headquartered in New York City.