Since about 2011, the Department of Justice has devoted considerable effort to investigate and prosecute alleged manipulation of the London Inter-Bank Offer Rate (LIBOR). LIBOR is an interest rate benchmark that is so embedded in the global financial system that, despite much criticism, and even during DOJ’s investigations and prosecutions, LIBOR has continued to be used by institutional borrowers and lenders, and will not be phased out fully until June 2023.

DOJ’s efforts have led to civil and criminal charges against global banks, resulting in the payment of approximately $8.5 billion in fines and penalties, and the prosecution of over 20 individuals in the United States and the UK, including Matthew Connolly and Gavin Black of Deutsche Bank AG (DB). Connolly and Black pled not guilty and were convicted at trial in 2018. Despite being critical of the government’s handling of the investigation, the district court denied motions for acquittal and for a new trial.