Tom Hayes, a former UBS and Citigroup trader, allegedly conspired with 22 others to manipulate LIBOR benchmark interest rates, a London court has heard, according to a Reuters report.

Tom Hayes, a former [tag|UBS|]UBS[/tag] and [tag|Citigroup|]Citigroup[/tag] trader, allegedly conspired with 22 others to manipulate LIBOR benchmark interest rates, a London court has heard, according to a Reuters report.

The 34-year-old, appeared alongside former RP Martin brokers Terry Farr and James Gilmour at Southwark Crown Court. He was charged with eight counts of conspiracy to defraud with staff from at least 10 banks and brokerages between 2006 and 2010.

The three UK citizens are the first suspects to face trial in an inquiry stretching from North America to Asia into whether traders manipulated market rates. A number of banks, such as Barclays, UBS and Royal Bank of Scotland, have been penalised over the LIBOR scandal, which has rocked confidence in the operations of financial markets. In the case of Barclays, the scandal led to the resignation of its high-profile chief executive, Bob Diamond, in the summer of 2012.

The news service's report said the trial, which is not expected to go ahead until 2015, will provide a test for David Green, head of Britain's Serious Fraud Office, who has reputedly staked his reputation on the success of major investigations such as the global inquiry into the manipulation of benchmarks.

Judge Jeremy Cooke said the indictments against Hayes and Farr had not been signed - meaning they were only in draft form - and therefore would be amended to remove the names of alleged co-conspirators. He emphasised no formal charge or complaint had been made against these other individuals.

The judge made the decision after lawyers representing some of the unnamed parties complained that their clients had only been told they would be named in court in a letter sent by the SFO on 30 September, the report added.