Ex-UBS trader Adoboli convicted of fraud

LONDON (REUTERS) - Former UBS trader Kweku Adoboli was convicted on Tuesday of the biggest fraud in British history, which resulted in a loss of US$2.3 billion (S$2.8 billion) for the Swiss bank.

Ghanaian-born Adoboli, 32, a senior trader on the Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) desk at UBS's investment banking arm in London, admitted trading far in excess of his authorised risk limits and making fictitious book entries to hide his true positions.

The prosecution had portrayed him as a reckless gambler who played God with UBS's money in the arrogant belief that he had the magic touch, driven by a desire to be a star trader with a huge bonus to match.

His defence was that the bank had turned a blind eye to rule-bending as long as profits rolled in and that others knew what he was doing and did not disapprove.