The push to change Barclays from a predominantly British retail bank to a global financial giant over the last two decades created a culture that put profit before customers, according to a report released yesterday, the New York Times DealBook blog reported. The independent review, which was ordered by the bank’s top management in the wake of a rate-rigging scandal last year, highlighted an "at all costs" attitude, particularly within the firm's investment bank, that was reinforced by a bonus system that encouraged taking risks over serving clients. "Barclays became complex to manage," said the report, which was overseen by Anthony Salz, former head of the law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer. "The culture that emerged tended to favor transactions over relationships, the short term over sustainability and financial over other business purposes."
