Libor latest: One person has donated £5,000 to Tom Hayes’ crowdfunding campaign
Tom Hayes' crowdfunding campaign to raise money for his legal fees has started to gather pace, with one anonymous individual parting with £5,000 for the cause.
The crowdfunding campaign, which is being hosted on Fundrazr and was set up to raise funds for Hayes' appeal to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), has now raised almost £10,000 since it was launched on 30 April. The campaign has a total target of £150,000.
"We are delighted at the public response to Tom's appeal," Karen Tighe, Hayes' mother-in-law, told City PM. "The media coverage has really helped us to reach out to people.
"Obviously we have a long way to go to achieve our ultimate goal and justice for Tom, but every contribution helps and we thank everyone who has donated so far."
Hayes, a former UBS and Citigroup trader, was convicted of offences related to manipulating Yen-linked Libor last August and was initially sentenced to 14 years in prison.
The case was brought in front of the Court of Appeal last December, where Hayes' conviction was upheld but his sentence reduced to 11 years.
Hayes had intended to appeal to the Supreme Court, but his application was rejected in March. Hayes was later ordered to pay £878,806 under a confiscation order and, during the confiscation hearing, he told the court that he had lost nearly everything trading in an attempt to raise money for his initial legal fees.
He now plans to bring his case to the CCRC, and it was announced yesterday that solicitor Karen Todner had been instructed to head up the appeal.
"We believe Tom has a strong case, which our submission to the CCRC will demonstrate," Todner said yesterday.
To date, Hayes is the only person to be found guilty in the UK for crimes related to Libor-rigging. Six former brokers had been accused of conspiring with Hayes but they were acquitted in January.