King pressured Barclays over Diamond's exit

Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, told Barclays' Marcus Agius on 2 July that Bob Diamond had lost the support of the regulator.

Despite having no official power over the bank, King took the extraordinary step of intervening directly following the LIBOR scandal to ensure Diamond was removed, it has been revealed. Speaking at a Treasury Select Committee hearing, Barclays chairman Marcus Agius said the governor spoke to Agius and non-executive director Sir Michael Rake the day before Diamond resigned. Agius said: "It was made plain to us Bob Diamond no longer enjoyed the support of his regulators." Agius and Rake then contacted the FSA before calling Diamond himself. "We explained what had happened. He [Dia...