LONDON: The U.S. owner of the New York Stock Exchange announced Tuesday it will take over the running of Libor, the benchmark interest rate at the centre of a global rigging scandal, in a move that Britain's financial regulator said would restore its integrity.
A central cog in the world financial system, Libor rates are used as a reference for some $550 trillion (369.92 trillion pounds) in contracts ranging from complex derivatives to everyday credit card bills. Trust in the London interbank offered rate (Libor) was shaken by revelations last year that traders had routinely manipulated it, prompting an overhaul of the system by which it is calculated.