Barclays boss Bob Diamond resigns amid Libor scandal

Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond has resigned a week after the bank was fined a record amount for trying to manipulate inter-bank lending rates.



BBC business editor Robert Peston said he was encouraged to go by the heads of the Bank of England and the FSA.

Mr Diamond said he was stepping down because the external pressure on the bank risked "damaging the franchise".

Chief operating officer Jerry del Missier has also resigned, the third top executive in two days to do so.

Barclays chairman Marcus Agius, who had announced his own resignation on Monday, will now take over the running of Barclays until a new chief executive is appointed.

Bob Diamond's severance package is still under discussion, Barclays says.

Bob Diamond could receive £30 million payout despite being forced to resign as Barclays chief executive

Bob Diamond could be entitled to a pay-off of between £20 and £30 million it emerged this afternoon despite being forced to resign of chief executive of Barclays over the rate rigging scandal.

Mr Diamond left his job with immediate effect early this morning after the Bank of England governor Sir Mervyn King made it clear to the Barclays’ chairman Marcus Agius that Mr Diamond’s position had become unsustainable.

He was swiftly followed by Barclays’ chief operating officer Jerry del Missier, who was formerly co-president of its investment arm Barclays Capital who stepped down just after lunch.

But despite the nature of their departure both men could be entitled to a huge pay-off.

The former City minister Lord Myners said that after taking into account share options, pension contributions and other factors – the total payout for Mr Diamond could reach £30 million.

“Defining the payoff is complex because senior executives get paid in multiple ways,” he said.

“But I think the amount of money, if you include his share options, restricted share rights, matching share options, retained bonus, pension, life and medical cover, is probably in the order of £20-£30 million.”

Executive directors at Barclays are entitled to a notice period of 12 months and payment in lieu of notice in instalments. This would mean Mr Diamond could be entitled to a full year's salary, worth £1.4 million.

Makes you feel sick when you see these obscene figures

In their eyes, they're hard done by with only 30 million quid reward for doing a poor job. And we have a party in government that agrees with them....but the rest of us, well, we deserve all that they dump on us!

Bob Diamond to receive full salary

Ex-Barclays boss Bob Diamond will receive his salary and benefits worth in excess of £2m, but has given up bonuses worth up to £20m after resigning amid the bank Libor scandal.

Barclays executive chairman Marcus Agius, who is being questioned by MPs about the scandal, said Mr Diamond had given up his bonus voluntarily.

Mr Agius also resigned but agreed to stay on to find Mr Diamond's successor.

He said he "regretted deeply" what had happened and was "truly sorry".

He told the committee he had resigned because he felt "ultimately responsible for the reputation of the bank".

He said Mr Diamond had resigned because "it became clear he had lost the support of his regulators". Mr Diamond's salary was £1.35m, and he had a six month notice period in his contract.

As Milliband says " They just don't get it "

"Through the keyhole..."

and whose house do we have here?

Banking inquiry a whitewash, says MP

Two of the Commons' toughest financial inquisitors were excluded from the parliamentary inquiry into the Libor rate-fixing scandal yesterday, prompting claims of a "whitewash".

Neither the Conservative MP Andrea Leadsom, who worked for Barclays for more than a decade and was widely praised for her questioning of Bob Diamond, nor the Labour MP John Mann have been selected to sit on the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards.

Their absence from the panel, which will begin its sessions this summer, was met with surprise and anger at Westminster.

Instead the positions went Tory MP Mark Garnier, Labour MPs Andy Love and Pat McFadden and the Liberal Democrat John Thurso. The Commission will be chaired by the Tory MP and Treasury Committee chairman Andrew Tyrie.

Of those on the committee only Mr Garnier has long-term and personal experience of the banking industry.

Could it be that the two MPs excluded could ask the wrong questions

You said "Could it be that the two MPs excluded could ask the wrong questions" - Don't you mean the RIGHT questions?