Henry Blaxland QC is representing former ICAP plc broker Darrell Read, accused of allegedly helping to rig the London Inter-bank Offered Rate (Libor), a global benchmark used to set interest rates.
Darrell Read, Colin Goodman, Danny Wilkinson, Terry Farr, Jim Gilmour and Noel Cryan face a total of five charges between them of trying to influence the Libor rate for financial gain.
All six defendants have pleaded not guilty.
During the closing arguments, reported in the Guardian and by Bloomberg, Henry Blaxland QC said Libor manipulation had been “endemic”, adding that the six defendants “have been made scapegoats for the failure of a system for which they are not directly responsible.”
The trial continues.
Henry Blaxland QC is a member of the Garden Court Chambers Fraud, Confiscation and Regulatory Team, winners of Legal 500 Crime Set of the Year 2015.