On January 21 and 22, a London jury acquitted six brokers charged with helping former UBS trader Tom Hayes manipulate the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”). Hayes was convicted last year in London and is currently serving his 11-year sentence. The brokers argued that although they told Hayes that they would move the rate, they did not have the power to do so and were just trying to keep Hayes happy. In fact, they argued, they had not passed on Hayes’s requests to employees who might actually be able to move the rate. The jury reached its verdict after two days of deliberating. The trial lasted four months.
