WASHINGTON—A federal appeals court reversed the convictions of two former Deutsche Bank AG traders found guilty of rigging a global lending benchmark, overturning one of the U.S. government’s highest-profile court victories linked to the 2008 financial crisis.
The decision Thursday dealt a blow to the legacy of an investigation that Washington poured resources into after the financial crisis, when prosecutors were criticized for not pursuing enough cases against individual traders and executives. The cases focused on how traders and brokers world-wide influenced the daily London interbank offered rate, known as Libor, which helped set the value of lucrative derivatives they traded and made banks appear healthier.