By Matthias Goldschmidt


Germany's financial watchdog imposed a 12.975 million euros ($13.9 million) fine on Citigroup Global Markets Europe for violating securities trading regulations.

The federal financial supervisory authority, known as Bafin, said Thursday that in May 2022, the bank didn't have the proper systems and risk controls in place to ensure appropriate trading thresholds and limits. There was also no guarantee that incorrect orders wouldn't be transmitted, as the trading system didn't recognize a manual input error by a trader and transmitted incorrect orders, causing a market disruption, Bafin said.

"We are pleased to resolve this matter from more than two years ago, which arose from an individual error that was identified and corrected within minutes. We immediately took steps to strengthen our systems and controls, and remain committed to ensuring full regulatory compliance," the company said.

Citigroup Global Markets Europe has outsourced its monitoring and administration system for algorithmic trading to Citigroup Global Markets Ltd. in London, but according to Bafin it remains responsible for the appropriate design of the trading system.


Write to Matthias Goldschmidt at matthias.goldschmidt@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

06-20-24 0647ET