高盛因操縱利率基準被罰1.2億美元

Goldman Sachs has been ordered to pay a fine of $120m by the US derivatives regulator over claims that its traders tried to rig a vital benchmark in the $300tn market for interest-rate swaps.

高盛(Goldman Sachs)被美國衍生品監管機構勒令支付1.2億美元罰款，原因是該行交易員被指試圖在300萬億美元的利率互換市場操縱一個關鍵基準。

Yesterday’s order from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission is the third relating to attempted manipulation of Isdafix, a key benchmark, following penalties for Citigroup ($250m) and Barclays ($115m) in May.

美國商品期貨交易委員會(CFTC)昨日發佈的命令，是針對操縱關鍵基準Isdafix的企圖的第三份罰單，此前花旗集團(Citigroup)和巴克萊(Barclays)已在5月分別被罰2.5億美元和1.15億美元。

It drags Goldman in to a global rate-rigging probe that began with Libor and Euribor, two interbank lending rates, and moved on to foreign exchange.

最新罰單標誌着高盛被捲入全球利率操縱調查，這項調查最初的焦點是倫敦銀行間同業拆借利率(Libor)和歐元銀行間同業拆借利率(EURIBOR)，並已轉向匯市。

To date, the CFTC has wrung fines of more than $5.2bn in 18 actions against a host of Wall Street banks.

迄今，商品期貨交易委員會已針對多家華爾街銀行採取18次行動，罰款總額超過52億美元。

The CFTC said Goldman’s unlawful conduct involved multiple traders, including the head of its interest-rate products trading group in the US.

商品期貨交易委員會稱，高盛的非法行爲涉及多個交易員，包括該行在美國的利率產品交易業務主管。

Penalties for manipulation should fall on the responsible Goldman perpetrators, not shareholders, said Bart Naylor, financial policy advocate at Public Citizen, a lobby group.

針對操縱的處罰應該落在要對此負責的高盛責任人身上，而不是股東身上，遊說團體公共公民(Public Citizen)的金融政策倡導人士巴特.內勒(Bart Naylor)表示。

According to the CFTC’s order, traders at Goldman carried out transactions in such a way as to try to influence the published US dollar Isdafix rate to benefit its own derivatives positions.

根據商品期貨交易委員會的命令，高盛交易員在進行交易時，試圖影響公佈的美元Isdafix利率，讓自己的衍生工具頭寸受益。

In addition, the bank made false reports on Isdafix, skewing its rate submissions to benefit the bank at the expense of its derivative counterparties and clients.

此外，該行對Isdafix做出虛假報告，扭曲其提交的利率，以犧牲其衍生品交易對手和客戶爲代價讓該行自己得利。

Goldman traders called attempts to rig the rate gaming the fix, the CFTC said.

商品期貨交易委員會稱，高盛交易員把操縱利率的企圖稱爲玩轉基準。

In one 2007 episode described by the CFTC as particularly brazen, a Goldman trader told his broker to refrain from reporting any changes in prices that went against the bank’s interests until after 11am that day, which was when Goldman was supposed to submit a quote to the administrator of the benchmark.

商品期貨交易委員會稱，2007年的一個情節尤其肆無忌憚，一名高盛交易員告訴他的經紀人，在當日上午11時（高盛理應向基準管理人提交報價的時間）之前不要報告任何違反該行利益的價格變動。

Submissions were supposed to reflect where the banks would trade interest rate swaps to a creditworthy dealer at that time.

提交的利率應該反映該行在當時與信用可靠的交易商進行利率互換交易所用的利率。

The trader then directed the broker to do whatever it took to keep the price down at that point.

然後，那名交易員指示經紀人在那個節骨眼上無論怎麼都要壓住價格。

Just have your screen guy go to coffee  . . . That’s why I’m calling you 10 minutes before, so you can get all this worked out, said the trader.

就讓你那裏盯着屏幕的夥計去喝咖啡吧……這就是爲什麼我提前10分鐘給你打電話，讓你可以搞定這一切，那名交易員說。

Have your screen guy go to the bathroom.

讓你那裏盯着屏幕的傢伙去上廁所也行。

The misconduct went on for at least five years through March 2012, the CFTC said.

商品期貨交易委員會說，不當行爲至少持續了五年，直到2012年3月。

Goldman said: We are pleased to have resolved these matters and have already taken steps to enhance our policies and procedures.

高盛表示：我行很高興能解決這些問題，並已採取措施加強我行的政策和程序。