This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/business/7291930.stm
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 2 | Version 3 |
---|---|
Second SocGen employee detained | Second SocGen employee detained |
(about 7 hours later) | |
A second Societe Generale employee has been arrested as part of the inquiry into an alleged rogue trader scandal at the bank, judicial officials say. | |
The bank confirmed that police had searched its trading floor and held one person for questioning. | The bank confirmed that police had searched its trading floor and held one person for questioning. |
Societe Generale said the employee was a cash equities broker, but declined to name the individual. | |
Societe Generale announced 4.9bn euros ($7.6bn; £3.8bn) of losses, which it blames on its trader Jerome Kerviel. | Societe Generale announced 4.9bn euros ($7.6bn; £3.8bn) of losses, which it blames on its trader Jerome Kerviel. |
'A scapegoat' | 'A scapegoat' |
This person has not been named, but is understood not to be the broker from the bank's Fimat unit - now called Newedge - and who was questioned and since named as a witness. | This person has not been named, but is understood not to be the broker from the bank's Fimat unit - now called Newedge - and who was questioned and since named as a witness. |
Mr Kerviel is being investigated for breach of trust, computer abuse and falsification. | Mr Kerviel is being investigated for breach of trust, computer abuse and falsification. |
He has previously said that he refused to be made "a scapegoat". | He has previously said that he refused to be made "a scapegoat". |
He is due to appear in court on Friday in an attempt to secure a temporary release while the investigation continues. | He is due to appear in court on Friday in an attempt to secure a temporary release while the investigation continues. |
Mr Kerviel has previously said that he was acting alone, but insisted that his bosses ignored his huge trades as long as he was making a profit. | Mr Kerviel has previously said that he was acting alone, but insisted that his bosses ignored his huge trades as long as he was making a profit. |
Lawsuit | |
The latest arrest came as a US-based law firm said it had filed a class action law suit against the French bank on behalf of holders of SocGen's US-listed shares. | |
It alleges that Societe Generale misled investors about exposure to the sub-prime mortgage market, and failed to act on information about trades by Mr Kerviel. | |
An internal inquiry at the bank found that it lacked controls that might have prevented the trader building up 50bn euros of unsupervised bets on European share prices. | |
The bank's 2007 profits fell 82% from 2006, mainly due to the losses incurred by Mr Kerviel but the bank also suffered some losses related to the sub-prime crisis. |