Seven banks summoned in US probe: Are the banks getting off lightly with fines?

Seven banks, including
HSBC and Royal Bank of Scotland, are to be questioned in the US for
alleged manipulation of the Libor inter-bank lending rate.

Barclays, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan and UBS have
also received subpoenas from the attorneys general of New York and
Connecticut.

Last month, Barclays was fined £290m by UK and US regulators for rigging Libor.

US regulators said they were investigating potential involvement by other banks in the Barclays scandal.

The investigation is predicated on the assumption that at
least one other bank must have colluded with Barclays in any attempts to
manipulate Libor rates, which are used as a reference to price
trillions of dollars of financial products.

The US authorities will see whether supporting documents and testimony provide sufficient evidence for a criminal prosecution.

Criminal charges could also bolster the strength of civil
lawsuits by investors seeking damages for losses due to any
rate-rigging.

"This is the first time we're seeing a legal case that is
trying to prove [collusion]. If they can prove it, then all the fees
could amount to tens of millions of pounds," said Ralph Silva, a banking
analyst at SRN.