The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said Friday that it has fined Citi, HSBC, Morgan Stanley, and Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) a combined £104.5 million for exchanging sensitive information about UK government bonds, known as gilts.
Citi, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and RBC Fined by UK Competition and Markets Authority
According to the CMA, individual traders at each bank shared competitively sensitive pricing information via private one-to-one Bloomberg chatrooms between 2009 and 2013.
The unlawful exchanges were said to be related to gilt auctions, trading, and sales to the Bank of England.
Deutsche Bank also participated in the chatrooms. However, it is exempt from a fine as it reportedly alerted the CMA to its participation in the chats via the authority’s leniency policy.
Citi also applied for leniency during the investigation, resulting in a 35% reduction in its fine to £17.2 million.
The fines imposed were:
- Citi – £17.2 million
- HSBC – £23.4 million
- Morgan Stanley – £29.7 million
- Royal Bank of Canada – £34.2 million
Juliette Enser, Executive Director of Competition Enforcement at the CMA, stated: “The financial services sector is an integral part of the UK economy, contributing billions every year, and it’s essential that it functions effectively.”
The CMA noted that the fines would have been higher if the banks had not implemented extensive compliance measures since the investigation began. The banks have until 22 April 2025 to pay their penalties.
