The government has announced the membership of the independent committee that will recommend a new administrator for the London Interbank Offered Rate (Libor).
The move is a key milestone in implementing one of the principal recommendations of the Wheatley Review of Libor, which the government accepted in full last year. The appointment of a new Libor administrator, better able to manage the process and governance, is crucial to restoring confidence in this international benchmark and in maintaining the reputation of the UK's financial services industry.
The government has already introduced legislation to make Libor a regulated benchmark and its manipulation a criminal offence.
The tendering process will be led by the Hogg tendering advisory committee, chaired by Baroness Hogg. Later this year, the committee will recommend a new Libor administration body which will take over from the British Bankers' Association (BBA).
Financial secretary to the Treasury, Greg Clark said: 'The government is determined to rebuild the reputation of UK financial services.
'Establishing confidence that the attempted manipulation of Libor can never happen again is crucial. That is why the committee will follow the principles laid out by the Wheatley review and recommend an organisation that displays the highest standards of transparency and probity to administer Libor.'
The work of the Committee can now progress following acceptance of a resolution by BBA members, voted upon at an extraordinary general meeting of the BBA this morning.
The new committee members are Baroness Hogg, (chair), chairman, Financial Reporting Council (FRC); Paul Fisher, executive director, markets, Bank of England; George Handjinicolaou, deputy CEO and head of EMEA, International Swaps and Derivatives Association; John Kingman, second permanent secretary, Treasury; John Stewart, chairman, Legal & General Group; Colin Tyler, chief executive, Association of Corporate Treasurers and Martin Wheatley, managing director, FSA.
The Chancellor announced that £1.3m will be given to causes and charities supporting the armed forces community. This money comes from fines levied on banks for attempting to manipulate Libor.
The government has already allocated £1m of fines revenue to the Fisher House Project at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital in December 2012, alongside £1.5m from Help for Heroes and £1.3m for the Fisher House Foundation.
The selected causes and charities are The Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA), The Felix Fund and Tickets for Troops.