Kerviel assistant handed preliminary charges

A 24-year-old former assistant to futures trader Jerome Kerviel has become the second person handed preliminary charges over the multi-billion Societe Generale French banking scandal.

Thomas Mougard is being probed on suspicion that he knowingly helped enter false data into a computer system on behalf of Kerviel, who was trying to cover up his massive trades.

Societe Generale has accused Kerviel, 31, of betting tens of billions of euro of the bank’s money without permission, which led to almost €5bn in losses once France’s second largest bank unwound his positions in January.