The news of Navinder Sarao's arrest, the scapegoat for all that is broken with the world's equity markets, may have come, gone and be largely forgotten, but while the CFTC is happy to have washed the corruption and incompetence off its hands by destroying the career of one insignificant trader (whatever happens, redirect public attention from the HFT firm that just came public and boasted of one trading loss day in 6 years [5]) Sarao is facing decades in prison. And, what is worse for the alleged mastermind of the May 2010 flash crash, he won't even be able to enjoy a few weeks in quasi-freedom. Why? Because this lonely 36 year old, who "crashed" the entire market 5 years ago from his parents' basement (literally), can't even afford bail.
From Bloomberg [6]:
Navinder Singh Sarao, the British trader facing U.S. charges for his alleged role in the 2010 flash crash, returned to Wandsworth prison after he failed to pay the 5 million pounds ($7.7 million) required for his bail.
Sarao, 36, has been in custody since April 21, when he was arrested at the house he shares with his parents near Heathrow airport. The terms he must meet to be released on bail were extended by one week at a hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London Wednesday.
Sarao, who appeared in court wearing a long-sleeved gray t-shirt, is facing 22 charges in the U.S. after being accused by prosecutors of contributing to the frenzy of the May 2010 flash crash, when investors saw nearly $1 trillion of value erased from U.S. stocks in just minutes. He’s alleged to have made almost $900,000 on the day of the crash and $40 million from 2010 to 2014. He is fighting extradition.
Out of curiosity, how many billion did has Virtu made from 2010 to 2014, a period during which it lost money on one single day?
Oh wait, one can't touch Virtu because they have all the so-called regulators in their back pocket. In fact, the only reason Sarao is in lock up indefinitely is to deflect attention from the real market manipulating criminals. We forgot.
As for Sarao, whose bail is larger than that set for most homicide suspects, this is what his true financial condition is:
The date of his extradition hearing was pushed back from August until Sept. 24 at the request of a lawyer for the U.S. at the hearing. No reason was given for the delayed bail payment. A lawyer for Sarao said last week he has about 5 million pounds in trading accounts and another 100,000 pounds in various betting accounts. Sarao holds a number of offshore accounts, according to documents released by U.S. authorities.
When his security is paid he will be allowed to go home, but will have to adhere to conditions including not accessing the Internet, checking in at a local police station three times a week, and staying at home every night, according to the trader’s bail order.
Wandsworth prison is the largest prison in the U.K. with more than 1,800 inmates, according to the Ministry of Justice website. Defendants from Westminster are automatically remanded in custody at Wandsworth, which has the second-highest security rating among U.K. detention facilities.
So as he awaits to have his frozen funds clear (he may have a while to wait) master criminal Sarao - whose life has been destroyed to protect those more powerful and more wealthy than him - has become a sideshow attraction.
[7]
A prison van arrives at Westminster Magistrates Court where trader Navinder Singh Sarao is due to appear after failing to raise the cash needed to make bail.
