Ex-Notts rogue trader found guilty of fraud

Kweku Adoboli (32), alma mater of Nottingham University has been found guilty today on one of two charges of fraud and four counts of false accounting.

The Jury is still deliberating over the other charges but it is reported by the BBC that the jury currently stands 9-1 in favour of conviction on all charges.

Prosecutor Sasha Wass QC told jurors that he was “a gamble or two away from destroying Switzerland’s largest bank for his own gain”.

Adoboli graduated from The University of Nottingham in July 2003 with a BSc(Hons) degree in E-commerce and Digital Business.

In 2006, after working as a waiter, he got a job with the banking giant UBS, where he made quick progress moving through the ranks. By 2007, he was positively wallowing in cash and his own sense of self worth.

Aged just 27, he had joint control of a trading portfolio worth £31bn and a basic salary of £110,000 with a £250,000 bonus in 2010.

His fortune didn’t last long. Adoboli started losing millions due to his relative inexperience as a trader and the economic crisis.

He took risks in his investments to try and win back the losses he had made. The Telegraph reports that he very nearly lost the bank £7.4bn and directly caused a £3.2bn loss in UBS’ stock market value.

He told Southwark Crown Court that his job had completely consumed him: “Every single bit of effort I put into that organisation was for the benefit of the bank.” However, the jury was not convinced and Adoboli will face sentencing in the coming weeks.

The University of Nottingham confirmed Adoboli’s course title and graduation but declined to comment further.