Barclays chairman Marcus Agius quits over Libor rate-fixing scandal

Marcus Agius, the chairman of Barclays Bank Plc was today forced to resign, A week after the London-based bank was fined £290 million ($452 million) by the UK and the US regulators for manipulating the London interbank offered rates (Libor) and the Euro interbank offered rate (Euribor).

The resignation comes after Barclays faced increasing pressure from the UK politicians and shareholders for strong action, although Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond has ignored calls to step down.

''Last week's events have dealt a devastating blow to Barclays' reputation,'' Agius said in a statement. ''As chairman, I am the ultimate guardian of the bank's reputation. Accordingly, the buck stops with me and I must acknowledge responsibility by standing aside.''

Agius, who has held the post for the past six years, will remain in post until the bank finds a successor, but has appointed Michael Rake, a senior independent director on the Barclays board and a former chairman of the accounting firm KPMG, as deputy chairman.

The Barclays board has agreed to launch an audit of its business practices, which will be led by an independent third party reporting to Sir Michael Rake and a panel of non-executive directors.

The bank said that it will undertake a root and branch review of all of the past practices that have been revealed as flawed since the credit crisis started and identify implications for its business practices.