Wall Street Flash Crash: Navinder Singh Sarao released on bail until extradition trial

Navinder Singh Sarao, who was charged with contributing to the cause of the 2010 Flash Crash has been released on bail, a court heard. The trader told Westminster Magistrates court that he could not access the money needed to pay out the £5.05m bail requirement because of long-term investments. He would not be able to access the money until 2017, he said.

Sarao, who has been in custody since 22 April and was locked up in Hounslow prison, was charged by US regulators with market manipulation and wire fraud as well as commodities fraud. The judge forced Sarao to reveal where he had hidden his money, and the west Londoner told the court he has £25.5m (€55.9m, $39.8m) locked away in Swiss bank accounts.

Meanwhile, £2.5m of that amount has been booked for legal costs, the trader said. He added that he cannot access a large proportion of his capital as the assets are frozen until the investment periods run out.

The 2010 Flash Crash saw the S&P 500, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and the Nasdaq 100 at Wallstreet collapse and bounce back up in a crash that lasted for more than half an hour. The markets affected by the crash are worth trillions of dollars.

Sarao has to stay at his parents' house in London and is not allowed to use the internet until an extradition hearing will take place on 24 September. The US Department of Justice wants Sarao to be extradited to the US, claiming that Sarao, operating from his semi-attached house in West London under his firm Nav Sarao Futures, has made £26m illegally through fraud and manipulation.