Reuters: Chatroom evidence challenges Bank of England's story in FX probe

By Jamie McGeever
Reuters
Thursday, March 20, 2014

LONDON -- British regulators are examining evidence relating to a 2012 meeting of currency dealers and Bank of England officials that potentially challenges the central bank's assertion it had not condoned sharing details of client orders.

The practice of sharing details about such orders is at the center of a global rigging probe.

Transcripts of a foreign exchange chatroom, now in the hands of Britain's Financial Conduct Authority, reveal that an unnamed senior dealer who attended the meeting told fellow traders the next day that Bank of England officials had agreed that there were advantages to sharing client order information to minimize market volatility around daily reference rates known as "fixings," two sources familiar with their content told Reuters.

By sharing information during these fixings, traders are able to match trades and minimize price swings, thereby lessening the risk they take on big transactions. ...

... For the full story:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/20/us-britain-boe-fx-idUSBREA2I21...