The upper tribunal has quashed the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) plan to ban the former chief operating officer of the wealth arm of Barclays for his misconduct.
Andrew Tinney was accused of acting recklessly and without integrity when he denied the existence of a document regarding the culture within Barclays Wealth’s US branch.
The FCA also alleged that Tinney made false or misleading statements to his colleagues in a response to the US Federal Reserve Bank about the document.
FCA executive director of enforcement and market oversight Mark Steward (pictured) said: “Senior management must be held to high standards of integrity which is the fundamental cornerstone of good conduct in trusted markets.
“Mr Tinney failed to act with integrity in one telling instance which is enough to justify this censure.”
The court’s decision
The upper tribunal also found that Tinney made a misleading statement to the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales about the nature of his conduct.
But it did not uphold neither misleading statements to the two bodies, nor the allegation that he mislead the FCA.
Instead, the court determined it appropriate for the UK regulator to issue a public censure about Tinney’s misconduct but turned down the FCA’s demand for him to be banned.
‘Scapegoated by Barclays’ bosses’
A statement issued on behalf of Tinney said: “The FCA went after the wrong person. Mr Tinney was trying to fix Barclays’ toxic culture and the cultural and compliance failings of its senior management. Instead he was scapegoated by Barclays’ senior management.
“Finally, after more than five long years of relentless pursuit by the FCA, Mr Tinney is delighted that the upper tribunal has recognised that he did not mislead the FCA nor the New York Fed and no documents were destroyed. The ultimate outcome is that he is free, once again to work for any financial services firm in any role.”
‘FCA has serious questions to answer’
Harvey Knight, partner at law firm Withers, which acted for Tinney during the FCA investigation, said: “This is an unprecedented upper tribunal judgment. With the upper tribunal having upheld the FCA’s own decision not to fine Mr Tinney, the FCA has also now decided not to pursue a prohibition order against Mr Tinney in the wake of that upper tribunal judgment.
“Put bluntly, Mr Tinney is free to work again in the financial services industry in any role. This is telling. The FCA has serious questions to answer about why it decided to pursue this case.”
Portfolio Adviser’s sister title International Adviser contacted Barclays, but the firm declined to comment.
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