USA wins contract to set LIBOR

The owner of the New York Stock Exchange is set to take control of a key scandal-hit bank interest rate.

NYSE Euronext has won the contract for setting the London Inter-bank Offered Rate (Libor) say Northampton chartered accountants Harris & Co as part of their accountancy services as specialist small business accountants

Libor is used to set trillions of dollars of financial contracts.

The move follows the revelation that banks had been manipulating the rate. Barclays, UBS and RBS have all been fined for their roles in the scandal.

They were found to have colluded in fixing the Libor setting in order to boost the profits of traders in the run-up to the financial crisis.

The new rate-setting body, to be known as NYSE Euronext Rate Administration, will be based in the UK and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).