Citigroup Inc has fired eight bankers and suspended three others from its equities trading desk in Hong Kong after an internal probe revealed misconduct in their dealings with clients, people with knowledge of the matter said. The action was taken after a review raised concerns related to the accuracy of disclosure to clients by the involved sales traders on some transactions where Citi was acting in a principal capacity, one of the people said.
Principal trade refers to a brokerage acting as the counterparty to settle deals with clients, instead of just broking a securities transaction between different parties.
"A review of Hong Kong-based cash equities execution identified personal conduct that did not meet our standards and we have taken appropriate action," the US bank said in a statement to Reuters on Saturday.
The names of the traders against whom actions were taken were not immediately known.