Soc Gen fined four million euros

The banking commission has fined Société Générale four million euros for "grave deficiencies" in its internal control which allowed a rogue trader to lose nearly five billion euros.

The punishment is at the top end of the scale which allows a maximum fine of five million euros. The highest fine it had previously issued was one million.

The bank has also been issued with a formal warning for failing to prevent the losses.

The commission said it had found "grave deficiencies in the internal control system" that "made possible the development of the fraud and its serious financial consequences."

So far only Jerome Kerviel, 31, has been charged with crimes relating to the incident - breach of trust, fabricating documents and illegally accessing computers.

Officials said on Thursday that prosecutors were also seeking charges of complicity against Kerviel's assistant, a man in his early 20s whose name has not been released.

Kerviel meanwhile has blamed his managers for not exerting proper control, saying they failed to reprimand him despite "tonnes of alerts" sent to them over his dealings.