Crispin Odey drops £79m libel case against Financial Times

Former hedge fund tycoon Crispin Odey dropped his libel claim against the Financial Times, ending a high-stakes legal battle over the publication’s reporting of sexual misconduct allegations.

The Financial Times published several articles about the City financier in 2023 regarding allegations over his sexual conduct, following allegations from 20 women spanning five decades.

Odey has consistently denied the allegations.

Although he filed his libel claim against the FT in May 2024, with a trial set for later this Summer, the FT revealed on Friday that its lawyers received a letter from the former hedge fund boss stating he had been “forced to accept” that the publication was “likely to succeed in establishing” its public interest defence.

The FT said, in defence of the case, that it had pleaded the accounts of 15 women willing to testify their allegations in court on its behalf, including three women whose allegations had not previously been reported.

“This is a vindication for investigative journalism and for the victims whose stories of abuse we reported,” said the FT’s editor, Roula Khalaf, in a press statement. “The FT was always confident in its reporting. This is a case that should have never been brought.”

Odey’s legal battle with City watchdog

Last month, Odey’s case against the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) went to the Upper Tribunal for a three-week trial, during which Odey faced hours of cross-examination.

Odey challenged a decision by the City regulator to ban him from the financial services industry.

The court heard a slew of allegations against Odey, which he has consistently maintained his innocence.

The outcome of this trial is currently awaiting judgment from the Upper Tribunal.

In a press statement on Friday evening, the FT stated that Odey’s lawyers wrote: “Having just endured the stress and strain of a three-week trial in the Upper Tribunal, he does not wish to pursue another lengthy trial at considerable cost, only to fail on the issue of public interest, even if he was successful, as he believes he would be, in demonstrating that he is not the violent predator he was presented as being in the articles.”

The FT stated that Odey now faces a seven-figure liability for the publication’s legal costs in addition to his own. A representative for Odey was approached for comment.