UK Financial Regulator to Review Results of Budget-Release Probe
(Bloomberg) — Britain’s financial regulator will review whether there was any potential market manipulation in the Office for Budget Responsibility’s early release of budget forecasts, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
The Financial Conduct Authority will review the findings of the OBR’s internal investigation into the accidental release of market-sensitive Treasury policies, said the person, who asked to remain anonymous to speak about an undisclosed investigation. The budget analysis was mistakenly published on the OBR’s website about an hour before Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves made her statement to the House of Commons.
The FCA will check for evidence of misuse of insider information, the person said.
Financial markets moved sharply after the 197-page document was published online in the run-up to Wednesday’s budget; The benchmark 10-year government bond yield fell 20 basis points, then rose again, overshadowing the budget speech. This was the first time the OBR document had been leaked in the early 15 years since it was established.
FCA declined to comment on Friday. The OBR did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
OBR Chairman Richard Hughes is due to publish preliminary results of the inquiry by Monday and has offered to resign if he loses the chancellor’s confidence. Hughes apologized for the mistake, saying he was “personally embarrassed”.
The budget watchdog appointed Ciaran Martin, the former director general of the National Cyber Security Centre, to help investigate the leak. The investigation will be overseen by independent members of the OBR’s oversight board, Sarah Hogg and Susan Rice.
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