Big Dog Barclays boss ‘was furious that Foxy Blonde outshone his wife’
A BARCLAYS boss nicknamed ‘Big Dog’ was furious his model wife did not get the attention she deserved for securing a multi-billion-pound deal during the financial crisis, High Court papers revealed yesterday.
Roger Jenkins, 64, once Britain’s best-paid banker, led Barclays’ efforts to secure a £7.3billion rescue deal from Middle Eastern investors in autumn 2008.
But newly released emails show he was angry that his wife Diana, 47, was treated like a ‘party girl’, while fellow financier Amanda Staveley, also 47, was lauded for her business acumen.
Mr Jenkins believed his wife should get credit for saving the bank because she helped win a £4billion investment from Qatar, the court filings show.
Mrs Jenkins, a Bosnian refugee turned socialite, was a regular on London’s A-list party scene. Her husband used her contacts to support his career, according to the documents.
The feud emerged as Miss Staveley, who once dated Prince Andrew, accused Mr Jenkins of lying as part of a £1.6billion deceit case in London’s High Court. She has claimed Barclays unfairly pushed her firm PCP Capital out of the lucrative deal by offering secret fees to other investors.
The financier, who was labelled a ‘foxy blonde’ and a ‘tart’ by Barclays bosses, has also accused executives at the bank of sexism and misogyny.
In the autumn of 2008 Barclays was desperate to maintain its independence and the right to pay massive bonuses and dividends, the court heard.
As other banks took Government bailouts, Barclays began to woo Middle Eastern investors to raise cash to see it through the crisis.
Mr Jenkins was friends with the Qatari prime minister, Sheikh Hamad, thanks to an introduction from his wife, according to court documents.
Meanwhile, Miss Staveley had close connections with a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family.
But Mr Jenkins, who earned £65million over two years and later dated model Elle Macpherson, was furious his wife’s role was not recognised while Miss Staveley’s contribution was widely acclaimed in the City, according to the court papers.
In an email to a fellow executive, Mr Jenkins said his wife had ‘left me’ as she was ‘disgusted with the way I and the bank have dealt with her’.
He added: ‘My family has fallen apart... she has worked to build my brand with all these heavy hitters and... when it counted, nothing! Party girl... She now looks like Paris Hilton. She has two university degrees! Then Amanda gets all the limelight. It has devastated me today.’
The email, dated November 2, 2008, was sent just weeks after Mr Jenkins Dates: Roger Jenkins and Elle Macpherson after his divorce called Miss Staveley ‘ the tart’ in a phone call to a colleague.
In a second email, from the previous day, Mr Jenkins said: ‘Diana teed up Hamad through his wife, that’s how it began. His wife wanted to be [in] Diana’s circle.’
The court dispute results from Miss Staveley’s claim that she was not given the same terms as the Qatari investors. She says Barclays told her six times that PCP and the Abu Dhabi investors would be offered the ‘same deal’.
Instead the bank misled the financial markets and funnelled an extra £346million in secret fees to the Qataris, a move which ‘smacked of corruption’, according to court documents.
In a witness statement, Miss Staveley said: ‘Mr Jenkins lied to me.’
Barclays disputes her claim, calling it ‘opportunistic and speculative’.
Jeffery Onions QC, for the bank, told the court: ‘The facts have been distorted or exaggerated to fit the case.’
Mr Jenkins, who has been acquitted in the criminal courts of wrongdoing related to the fundraising, has been called to give evidence as a witness.
Mr and Mrs Jenkins split in 2009 and divorced amicably in 2012, reportedly agreeing a £150million settlement.
The case continues.
‘She now looks like Paris Hilton’ The ‘Foxy Blonde’, ‘Big Dog’ banker and a £1.6bn sexism battle at Barclays
From Tuesday’s Mail