The Serious Fraud Office charged Barclays and four individuals with conspiracy to commit fraud and the provision of unlawful financial assistance contrary to the Companies Act.

The charges relate to Barclays’ capital raising arrangements with Qatar Holding and Challenger Universal, which took place in June 2008 and October 2008, and a US$3 billion loan facility made available to the State of Qatar acting through the Ministry of Economy and Finance in November 2008. The SFO opened its investigation in 2012.

The SFO has brought the following charges:

Conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation in relation to the June 2008 capital raising, contrary to s1 and s2 of the Fraud Act and s1(1) of the Criminal Law Act;

Conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation in relation to the October 2008 capital raising, contrary to s1 and s2 of the Fraud Act and s1(1) of the Criminal Law Act;

Unlawful financial assistance contrary to s151 of the Companies Act.

The executives charged are John Varley, former chief executive officer of Barclays; Roger Jenkins, former executive chair of Investment Banking and Investment Management in the Middle East and North Africa at Barclays Capital; Thomas Kalaris, former chief executive of Barclays Wealth and Investment Management, a division of Barclays; and Richard Boath, former European head of Financial Institutions Group. The defendants will appear before Westminster Magistrates’ Court at 14.00 on 3 July 2017.

In a statement, the Financial conduct authority said, “We are pleased that this matter, which led to the stay of our own case, is now in the public domain. We welcome a fair and transparent hearing on the basis of the charges set out today by the SFO. We work closely with the SFO across a range of matters, in pursuit of our distinct objectives.”

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