London - Former Barclays executives have been called on to give evidence to Britain's anti-fraud agency as part of an investigation into undisclosed payments the bank made to Qatari investors in 2008, the Financial Times reported, citing sources.
The FT said the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) had served Section 2 notices on directors who were on the Barclays board when it secured almost £12bn, mostly from Middle East investors, to avoid a state bailout during the 2008 credit crisis.
Section 2 notices deny those giving evidence a right to silence and require recipients to hand over documents to the SFO - in exchange, the recipients will not be prosecuted provided they do not lie.
Sources told Reuters last month that the SFO could decide as soon as September whether to charge former Barclays executives over the matter.
As part of a 2008 deal with investors, the bank revealed £116m in advisory fees and commission to Qatar Holdings. However, Britain's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said the bank had failed to reveal another £322m in two "advisory services agreements" with the Qatari company.
Barclays said at the time that it had disclosed one of the agreements, but not the value, and is contesting the FCA findings. The FCA case is on hold pending the outcome of the SFO's investigation.