Currency ‘Cartel’ Traders on Trial for Chats That Cost Billions

The three British currency traders who were part of an exclusive online chat group referred to by members as “the cartel” go on trial this week for alleged market manipulation that’s already cost global banks $14 billion in penalties.

The trio represented banks handling a major chunk of the $5.1 trillion-a-day currency market. The men are accused of rigging a key market benchmark to profit at the expense of competitors and their own customers. Since their behavior was exposed by Bloomberg in 2013, the industry has pledged to clean up its act with tighter in-house restrictions and better compliance tools. ...