Three former Barclays executives were acquitted in London on Friday of charges they helped funnel 322 million pounds ($418 million) in secret fees to Qatar during the credit crisis, in return for rescue funding.
Ciara Lee reports
Ex-Barclays bankers cleared over Qatar fees in blow to UK fraud office
Three former Barclays executives were acquitted of fraud charges in London on Friday (February 28).
The three were accused of helping funnel $418 million in secret fees to Qatar during the credit crisis, in return for rescue funding.
In a blow to the UK's taxpayer-funded Serious Fraud Office, a jury cleared Roger Jenkins, Tom Kalaris, and Richard Boath.
All three had denied any wrongdoing.
Qatar, which is still a significant Barclays shareholder, was neither investigated nor accused of wrongdoing.
The verdict draws a line under an ambitious, seven-and-a-half year inquiry.
It led to the first criminal charges in Britain against senior financiers at a major bank over conduct during the credit crisis.
It also marks the likely end of efforts by prosecutors to hold top bankers to account over decisions taken when the global financial system was brought to its knees, forcing taxpayers into bank bailouts totalling hundreds of billions of pounds.