Comment on Barclays chairman steps down after rates scandal

Barclays chairman steps down after rates scandal Associated Press Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Updated 02:33 a.m., Monday, July 2, 2012 [...] the buck stops with me and I must acknowledge responsibility by standing aside. In a further attempt to soothe critics, Agius said Michael Rake, a senior independent director of the bank, has been appointed to lead an in-house review of all past practices and to publish a report of its findings and develop a new, mandatory code of conduct for everyone at Barclays. Barclays Chief Executive Bob Diamond, who is also under great pressure because of the scandal, said Agius "has been a thoughtful and supportive colleague to me in all of my roles — especially since I became chief executive last year — and for this I will always be grateful." "Even taking account of the abnormal market conditions at the height of the financial crisis, and that the motivation was to protect the bank, I accept that the decision to lower submissions was wrong," Diamond said last week in a letter to Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the House of Commons Treasury Committee. RBS, 82 percent owned by British taxpayers, declined to comment Monday on news reports that it had fired three traders in London and one in Singapore late last year because of interest rate manipulation.