HKMA says investigating UBS over interbank interest rates

Hong Kong's de facto central bank said on Thursday it had started an investigation into possible misconduct by UBS involving submissions the bank made towards establishing the territory's interbank interest rates.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) said in a statement it had received information from overseas regulatory authorities about possible misconduct by UBS involving submissions for the Hong Kong Interbank Offered Rate (HIBOR) and other reference rates in the region.

HKMA's announcement comes a day after the Swiss bank admitted to fraud and bribery in connection with efforts to rig LIBOR and other benchmark interest rates and agreed to pay $1.5 billion in fines to regulators in the United States, Britain and Switzerland.