EU Leaders in Favour of European Commission’s Proposals on Libor and Financial Benchmarks
- The European Council, an EU institution of heads of states has commended the measures taken by the European Commission in its proposals to enhance confidence in the system following recent scandals involving major banks.

The European Commission’s attempts to restore confidence in the global financial marketplace has been applauded by governments in the European Union. The collective body of member states, the EU Council, issued a statement on the matter. The EC has been working extensively to bring back assurance in the EU financial markets after the Libor and FX rates manipulation cases.
The EU Council’s support comes as markets face another set-back with the recent Swiss franc crisis, thus putting investors back on the edge. Nonetheless, the token of support gives the market a much needed boost as sell-side firms desperately await trading flows to increase.
The Libor and FX fixing rates scandals were recognised as one of the biggest scams affecting the global financial markets post-2008 recession, involving the world’s largest banking institutes, which brought an end to a number of traders’ careers that were involved in the fraud and manipulation.
Jonathan Hill, pictured, EU Commissioner responsible for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union, commented in a statement, saying, “Manipulating benchmarks amounts to stealing from investors and consumers and undermines confidence in markets. I welcome the backing given by the Council today. The proposed Regulation Regulation Like any other industry with a high net worth, the financial services industry is tightly regulated to help curb illicit behavior and manipulation. Each asset class has its own set of protocols put in place to combat their respective forms of abuse.In the foreign exchange space, regulation is assumed by authorities in multiple jurisdictions, though ultimately lacking a binding international order. Who are the Industry’s Leading Regulators?Regulators such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority ( Like any other industry with a high net worth, the financial services industry is tightly regulated to help curb illicit behavior and manipulation. Each asset class has its own set of protocols put in place to combat their respective forms of abuse.In the foreign exchange space, regulation is assumed by authorities in multiple jurisdictions, though ultimately lacking a binding international order. Who are the Industry’s Leading Regulators?Regulators such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority ( Read this Term will ensure that we have benchmarks that are robust, reliable and representative."
The EC published a number of standards and recommendations to restore confidence in the system, these were presented in 2013, the main points addressed the accountability of data with processes for firms that contribute and supply data, for example, in reference to the administrator the proposal states: “The administrator will produce a code of conduct which clearly specifies the Obligations Obligations In finance, an obligation is a financial responsibility where the terms of a contract must be met. Should an obligation between parties fail then the party who is at default may face legal action. In this scenario, the guilty party will not only have to agree to pay the set amount to fulfill the contractual arrangement but may also be responsible for covering all legal proceedings cost. Routine payments or outstanding debt of any kind are considered financial obligations, so if someone owes you In finance, an obligation is a financial responsibility where the terms of a contract must be met. Should an obligation between parties fail then the party who is at default may face legal action. In this scenario, the guilty party will not only have to agree to pay the set amount to fulfill the contractual arrangement but may also be responsible for covering all legal proceedings cost. Routine payments or outstanding debt of any kind are considered financial obligations, so if someone owes you Read this Term and responsibilities of the contributors when they provide input data for a benchmark.
These include obligations on handling conflicts of interest.”
Key benchmark rates play a crucial role in the financial ecosystem; traders rely on benchmarks for a range of purposes that are primarily related to reducing asymmetric information regarding the value of the underlying traded financial instrument.
The Libor scandal was part of the benchmark rate manipulation; investigations took place in 2010 which showed that the rates were being shaped by the administrators and staff members at banks. Lloyds Banking Group was fined $161 million by the FCA in July 2014. A number of individuals were charged for their involvement in the case, in October 2014, the Serious Fraud Office charged a former Tullet Prebon over Libor manipulation.
The European Commission’s attempts to restore confidence in the global financial marketplace has been applauded by governments in the European Union. The collective body of member states, the EU Council, issued a statement on the matter. The EC has been working extensively to bring back assurance in the EU financial markets after the Libor and FX rates manipulation cases.
The EU Council’s support comes as markets face another set-back with the recent Swiss franc crisis, thus putting investors back on the edge. Nonetheless, the token of support gives the market a much needed boost as sell-side firms desperately await trading flows to increase.
The Libor and FX fixing rates scandals were recognised as one of the biggest scams affecting the global financial markets post-2008 recession, involving the world’s largest banking institutes, which brought an end to a number of traders’ careers that were involved in the fraud and manipulation.
Jonathan Hill, pictured, EU Commissioner responsible for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union, commented in a statement, saying, “Manipulating benchmarks amounts to stealing from investors and consumers and undermines confidence in markets. I welcome the backing given by the Council today. The proposed Regulation Regulation Like any other industry with a high net worth, the financial services industry is tightly regulated to help curb illicit behavior and manipulation. Each asset class has its own set of protocols put in place to combat their respective forms of abuse.In the foreign exchange space, regulation is assumed by authorities in multiple jurisdictions, though ultimately lacking a binding international order. Who are the Industry’s Leading Regulators?Regulators such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority ( Like any other industry with a high net worth, the financial services industry is tightly regulated to help curb illicit behavior and manipulation. Each asset class has its own set of protocols put in place to combat their respective forms of abuse.In the foreign exchange space, regulation is assumed by authorities in multiple jurisdictions, though ultimately lacking a binding international order. Who are the Industry’s Leading Regulators?Regulators such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority ( Read this Term will ensure that we have benchmarks that are robust, reliable and representative."
The EC published a number of standards and recommendations to restore confidence in the system, these were presented in 2013, the main points addressed the accountability of data with processes for firms that contribute and supply data, for example, in reference to the administrator the proposal states: “The administrator will produce a code of conduct which clearly specifies the Obligations Obligations In finance, an obligation is a financial responsibility where the terms of a contract must be met. Should an obligation between parties fail then the party who is at default may face legal action. In this scenario, the guilty party will not only have to agree to pay the set amount to fulfill the contractual arrangement but may also be responsible for covering all legal proceedings cost. Routine payments or outstanding debt of any kind are considered financial obligations, so if someone owes you In finance, an obligation is a financial responsibility where the terms of a contract must be met. Should an obligation between parties fail then the party who is at default may face legal action. In this scenario, the guilty party will not only have to agree to pay the set amount to fulfill the contractual arrangement but may also be responsible for covering all legal proceedings cost. Routine payments or outstanding debt of any kind are considered financial obligations, so if someone owes you Read this Term and responsibilities of the contributors when they provide input data for a benchmark.
These include obligations on handling conflicts of interest.”
Key benchmark rates play a crucial role in the financial ecosystem; traders rely on benchmarks for a range of purposes that are primarily related to reducing asymmetric information regarding the value of the underlying traded financial instrument.
The Libor scandal was part of the benchmark rate manipulation; investigations took place in 2010 which showed that the rates were being shaped by the administrators and staff members at banks. Lloyds Banking Group was fined $161 million by the FCA in July 2014. A number of individuals were charged for their involvement in the case, in October 2014, the Serious Fraud Office charged a former Tullet Prebon over Libor manipulation.