Former employees of ICAP, Rabobank, the Royal Bank of Scotland, Deutsche Bank and UBS were among 22 names that the UK Serious Fraud Office included as alleged co-conspirators on a draft indictment against Tom Hayes, a former star trader at both UBS and Citigroup who is facing criminal charges stemming from a probe into alleged Libor manipulation.
Daniel Wilkinson, a former broker at ICAP; Brent Davies, who was both at ICAP and RBS; Paul Robson, a former trader at Rabobank; Guillaume Adolph, formerly at Deutsche; and Mirhat Alykulov, who was Mr Hayes's assistant at UBS, were among the names to be included on an indictment against Mr Hayes, which has since been withdrawn.
None have been formally accused of wrongdoing by the fraud agency but may face investigation, according to a copy of an SFO letter read out by Mr Justice Cooke during a hearing at London's Southwark Crown Court on Monday.
The letter, sent at the end of September, informed individuals that while some had not yet been interviewed, they would be named in criminal proceedings as Mr Hayes' alleged co-conspirators. As such they were invited to apply for anonymity, as first reported by the Financial Times.
While none of Mr Hayes' alleged co-conspirators were named in court, people familiar with the letter confirmed some of the recipients' identities.
A new indictment against Mr Hayes and two brokers at RP Martin, Terry Farr and James Gilmour, will be prepared after an extraordinary four days that has underscored the difference in how different legal systems balance freedom of expression with the proper administration of justice.
The SFO won a temporary injunction on Thursday against the Wall Street Journal, which published eight of the names reportedly included on the draft indictment, including Mr Robson and Mr Alykulov, ahead of the hearing. Mr Justice Cooke declined to renew that injunction on Monday.
Mr Hayes was expected to enter pleas on Monday to eight criminal counts of conspiracy to defraud. He has postponed entering those pleas in light of the indictment's redrafting, as have Mr Farr and Mr Gilmour.
The SFO plans for Mr Hayes to stand trial separately from Mr Farr and Mr Gilmour, and not before January 2015, the court heard.
Not only will the new indictment omit reference to Mr Hayes' alleged co-conspirators, but will also narrow the charges brought by the SFO. Until Monday, the agency was seeking to charge Mr Hayes with the manipulation of yen Libor and "other interbank offered rates". Those last four words will now be removed from the indictment.
Legal experts saw this as important because it could increase Mr Hayes' vulnerability to being extradited to the US, where he also faces charges stemming from the Department of Justice's own criminal investigation. He has not had an opportunity to respond to the US charges.
The SFO charged Mr Hayes in its separate probe in June, which had effectively neutralised any US claim for extradition. He has co-operated and given extensive interviews, the court heard.
Mr Wilkinson has also been charged by DoJ and faces possible extradition unless the SFO arrests him.
"I find it hard to reconcile - and it is unique in my experience," said Matthew Frankland, Mr Wilkinson's solicitor, in respect of his client not being interviewed by the SFO and not being a defendant, yet having been included on the SFO's original draft indictment.
Solicitors for Mr Alykulov and for Mr Adolph declined to comment. Lawyers for Mr Davies and Mr Robson did not return calls seeking comment.
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