UBS rogue trader ordered to stay in custody
A trader accused of losing Swiss bank UBS about $2.3 billion (SFr2.1 billion) has been ordered by a judge to be held in jail until a hearing next month.
The man, 31, is charged with four offences of fraud and false accounting dating back to 2008 and is accused of racking up losses in authorised trades.
Presiding magistrate Alison Gowman told the man on Thursday he would remain in custody until a hearing on October 20. The trader, whose lawyer said he was “sorry beyond words”, spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address. He did not enter a plea.
The trader’s arrest a week ago has piled the pressure on UBS chief executive Oswald Grübel and stoked speculation that the bank could get rid of its investment banking operations.
On Thursday, Grübel met the bank’s board of directors in Singapore. The UBS top brass had planned to be in Singapore this week because the bank is a major sponsor of the Formula One race being held on the island.
However, the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC), UBS’s biggest shareholder, said earlier this week in a rare public rebuke that it was concerned about lapses at UBS.
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