Fictitious Account: 88888

Nick Leeson, Head of Back and Front Office.
He began authorizing his own trades, gradually losing his composure.
Nick manipulated the computer to create a special fictitious account.
This account was assigned the number 88888, inspired by a lucky Chinese number.
Using this phantom account, Nick began to conceal everything instantly: first, a $40,000 debt incurred by a subordinate, then even larger losses... all without anyone noticing.
While Nick toiled daily to manage options, buying and selling futures in an attempt to at least break even, the fictitious account 88888 continued to grow.

In March 1993, Nick succeeded in covering $32 million in losses, but... 'This was the first and last time.'
The total losses ballooned, becoming unmanageable.

'The money had lost its reality. Compared to the $50 million on the monitor, 50 pence in my hand felt far more tangible.'
Nick began to act alone. Nothing could stop him now.
In 1994, Nick single-handedly managed half of the total trading volume on the Singapore Monetary Exchange... and 60% of that activity was related to the fictitious account 88888.

A Diversion with Manchester United

His superiors seemed a little too pleased with Nick Leeson's performance.
Nick had a blank check at his disposal, sometimes writing checks for $75 million in a single day.
'I told terrible lies to my superiors to get cash. The checks in Singapore were not examined closely. The regulators were utterly incompetent...'
Trader Nick Leeson manipulated Simon Jones, the Barings Bank financial services representative who had been warned about his trading irregularities by SIMEX, and evaded internal audits.

'Midway through our meeting, I felt unwell. Jones then asked me what I thought of Manchester United. It was then I realized that sports betting was my only escape. I started telling Jones, 'Manchester United are just a collection of amateurs.' 'Cantona is a professional thug, and the team's supporters are London yuppies. The only real team in Manchester is 'City'.'

As I spoke passionately, Jones bet £500 that Manchester United would win. I took the bet, but whether they won or lost is irrelevant. At that moment, I realized something. While I was thinking about the bet, Jones forgot about my problems. That's how things progressed.

In 1994, having successfully concealed his fraud, Nick's performance was the best at Barings Bank.
Simultaneously, Nick became one of the world's leading traders, receiving attractive offers from numerous business banks.
'I didn't do anything as vulgar as accepting offers.'