UK Finance chief Stephen Jones steps down

Jones (pictured) stepped down after becoming embroiled in Amanda Staveley's ongoing court case against Barclays.

UK Finance chief Stephen Jones steps down

UK Finance chief executive Stephen Jones (pictured) has stepped down from his role after becoming embroiled in Amanda Staveley's ongoing court case against Barclays.

Financier Staveley has taken the banking giant to court claiming that she lost out on up to £1.6bn in fees after Barclays unfairly favoured other investors over her firm, PCP Capital Partners, as the bank sought to raise £7.3bn at the height of the financial crisis.

However UK Finance chief Jones has become involved in the case after being accused of making "thoroughly unpleasant personal comments" about Staveley.

The exact nature of which are expected to be revealed in full when he takes the stand in the case.

However, it is widely reported that Jones, who was the managing director of Barclays Capital at the time, allegedly referred to Staveley's firm PCP Capital Partners as “a bunch of scumbags” and "f***ers".

The case has been dogged by allegations of sexism against Barclays senior management and Stavely has accused bank supremos of misogyny.

However Staveley's main claim relates to a 2008 deal which saw Barclays seek investment from Qatar and Abu Dhabi as it looked to avoid a government bailout.

Staveley claims her firm PCP Capital Partners arranged for a group of investors led by Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour to join the fundraise.

It was arranged for the investors to buy £3.5bn worth of Barclays' shares - the deal, Staveley claims, was to be offered on the same terms as the one offered to Abu Dhabi.

However she alleges that despite being repeatedly reassured that her investors were being offered the same deal that was not the case.

Staveley's firm made £30m from the deal - considerably less than the £1.6bn she claims PCP Capital Partners could have made.

Jones has spent nearly thirty years working in financial services including roles with Santander, Barclays, Citigroup and Schroders.

He was the inaugural CEO of UK Finance which was created in July 2017 following the merger of the British Bankers' Association, Payments UK, the Council of Mortgage Lenders, the UK Cards Association and the Asset Based Finance Association. UK Financerepresents more than 250 firms across the financial services industry.

The trial continues.