Rogue trading

In one of the world's biggest-ever cases of alleged "rogue trading," Kweku Adoboli has entered a plea of 'not guilty' in a London court where he faces charges on four counts of fraud and false accounting.

Adoboli, who could receive a maximum 10 years in prison if found culpable, spoke only to confirm his name and reply "not guilty" to all the charges when they were read out to him at a packed Southwark Crown Court.

Judge Alistair McCreath remanded Adoboli in custody and set a trial date of September 3.

The losses incurred by UBS were a severe blow, leading to the resignation of the bank's chief executive Oswald Grübel and triggering a shake-up of its investment banking services.

Adoboli worked for UBS's global synthetic equities division in London's financial district, buying and selling funds which track different types of stocks or commodities, such as precious metals.

UBS pushed to the brink

The bank came close to collapse during the 2008 financial crisis because of its exposure to bad loans, particularly in the US subprime mortgage market. UBS received a government bailout and cut thousands of jobs. The bank's recovery was then threatened by uncertainty over a deal between Switzerland and the US government designed to clamp down on tax evasion.

The Adoboli trial is expected to shed light on the bank's management procedures, traders and risk controls.

Adoboli, the British-educated son of a former United Nations official from Ghana, was arrested in London on September 15 of last year.

At his last hearing in December, his lawyers said he had changed legal teams because he was unhappy with the advice he had received and could not enter a plea at that time.

Author: Gregg Benzow (AFP, Reuters)
Editor: Matt Zuvela