Barclays unfairly singled out: Diamond

The former head of Barclays apologised for the “reprehensible” behaviour of his traders who fixed interest rates, but told British MPs his bank was unfairly singled out after coming forward to admit wrongdoing.

Bob Diamond, 60, quit this week after Barclays agreed to pay nearly half a billion dollars in fines for manipulating the interest rates at the heart of the global financial system.

British politicians have seized on the case as a symbol of a culture of greed that has poisoned the financial industry. Newspapers have highlighted emails disclosed in the case which show traders congratulating each other for fiddling figures with promises of champagne.