Ex-Deutsche Bank Traders Convicted of Wire Fraud in Market-Manipulation Case
Dave Michaels, 25 September 2020
A jury on Friday convicted two former Deutsche Bank employees accused of manipulating precious-metals prices, boosting prosecutors’ efforts to punish traders for conduct that has cost banks millions of dollars in civil and criminal fines.
The verdict represents prosecutors’ second win in trials over conduct known as spoofing, a rapid-fire manipulation tactic that involves sophisticated detective work to expose.
Companies including Deutsche Bank and Bank of America have collectively paid hundreds of millions of dollars in fines over spoofing claims. With Friday’s outcome, three traders have now been convicted of spoofing-related crimes. Another trader was acquitted, and another trial ended in a hung jury.
The jury convicted James Vorley, a U.K. citizen, of three of eight counts of wire fraud. Cedric Chanu, a French citizen who lives in Dubai, was convicted of seven of 10 counts of wire fraud. Both men were acquitted of one count of conspiracy.
