German Regulators Probe Citigroup

BaFin, the German financial market regulator, has asked prosecutors to probe US banking giant Citigroup over possible market manipulation in the eurozone government bond futures market. "In Germany, unlike the way it works in the UK for example, BaFin cannot sanction the offense of market manipulation. That is the sole responsibility of the prosecutor to open a criminal suit," BaFin chief Jochen Sanio told the French daily Les Echos. A BaFin official said that there was concrete evidence that (Citigroup traders) attempted to push up the price of bonds´artificially and then take advantage of it. Prosecutors in Frankfurt confirmed that a complaint had been filed against six Citigroup employees, but refused to disclose any further details. At the center of the probe are some controversial bond trades by Citigroup in August.