Deutsche Bank Traders entangled in gold price manipulation scandal

In an effort to clean up trading activity in the precious metals markets, the US authorities won an important victory on Friday after two former employees of Deutsche Bank traders were found guilty of manipulating gold and Silver Prices. On Friday, a federal judge in Chicago found James Vorley, 42, of the United Kingdom, and Cedric Chanu, 40, of France and the United Arab Emirates, guilty of three and seven charges, respectively, of wire transfer fraud at a financial institution, following a two-week trial in Chicago. "Today's jury ruling shows that those who try to fraudulently manipulate our public financial markets will be held accountable by the jury and the Department," Deputy Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Department of Justice's Criminal Division said in a press release . The two were found guilty of manipulating the precious metals markets from 2008 to 2013. It is an illegal high frequency trading strategy in which bids and offers are placed on an exchange and then canceled before they can be executed. The orders are placed with no intention of ever being carried out. During the hearing, the court heard from another former Deutsche Bank trader who said he had been trained in spoofing by Vorley and Chanu. "I saw Mr. Vorley and Mr. Chanu do it," Liew said in his testimony. Liew pleaded guilty to the spoofing charge and cooperated with the government in exchange for leniency. Although spoofing is illegal, Liew said in his testimony that they were "so commonplace" among his staff that he thought it was okay. According to Bloomberg, the two ex-dealers have announced through their lawyers that they will appeal the verdict. The guilty verdict comes after the Securities Exchange Commission and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission began taking action against manipulation in the precious metals market. Last week, Bloomberg reported that JPMorgan Chase would be fined $ 1 billion for her role in manipulating the markets. Last month, the Bank of Nova Scotia agreed to pay $ 127.5 million in fines to settle allegations of tampering with the metal market.