For years, Christine O’Reilly, a dealer on the interdealer brokerage TP ICAP, alleges she suffered sexual harassment from Benjamin Waters, a dealer at Citigroup and a shopper, who would ship her late-night messages, unfold rumors they have been sleeping collectively and as soon as tried to observe her into her lodge room, O’Reilly claims. The unwelcome advances bought so dangerous that in 2023, she lastly blocked him on the messaging platform WhatsApp.
However when O’Reilly’s supervisor discovered, the 31-year-old dealer alleges she was pressured to unblock the dealer, “tying her job to the need to tolerate sexual harassment,” in line with a lawsuit filed in a Mahattan federal court docket on Monday.
The incident is only one of a number of outlined within the go well with—filed by O’Reilly in opposition to TP ICAP, Citigroup, and her supervisor, Janie McCathie—that reveal “how unethical traders at powerful financial institutions exploit control over lucrative order flows to extract inappropriate personal favors from brokers,” in line with the grievance. Waters isn’t listed as a defendant, however the go well with claims there was a second Citi worker who allegedly knew in regards to the harassment sample and did nothing.
“No professional should have to choose between suffering or enduring harassment and losing a career,” Seth Redniss, the lawyer representing O’Reilly, advised Fortune. “That’s not a choice, that’s coercion.”
Citi advised Fortune that “the two individuals directly connected to Citi who are named in the suit are no longer with the bank,” however declined to remark additional. ICAP did reply to repeated requests for remark.
In June 2017, the go well with says O’Reilly was promoted to dealer on ICAP’s Delta One MSCI Desk in New York, the place she started reporting to McCathie, who was based mostly in London. It was by means of McCathie that she first met Waters, who the grievance describes as a high-value dealer who might direct billions of {dollars} in money stream towards the brokerage.
Between 2020 and 2023, the go well with alleges that Waters, based mostly in London, made persistent and undesirable advances towards O’Reilly, with McCathie’s full data. Screenshots included within the go well with present Waters making repeated video calls and sending textual content messages to O’Reilly on WhatsApp regardless of receiving no response.
The go well with additionally alleges that Waters despatched sexually express messages to O’Reilly, asking her to ship pictures of herself and twice sharing almost nude pictures of a girl he mentioned he was courting. Waters additionally messaged O’Reilly on Instagram to ask what she was carrying, in line with a screenshot within the go well with.
On July 26, 2023, screenshots present that O’Reilly blocked Waters on WhatsApp. However McCathie ordered O’Reilly to unblock him, the go well with alleges, and screenshots then present O’Reilly unblocking Waters on Tuesday, Aug. 8. That Saturday, Waters despatched O’Reilly a photograph of himself getting drinks with McCathie, “reminding Ms. O’Reilly of his perceived untouchable status,” the grievance alleges.
“This was me telling you … you didn’t read between the lines,” he wrote Aug. 25, after O’Reilly didn’t reply to the sooner message.
He then referred to as O’Reilly, who didn’t reply, and a day later texted her, “are you even alive?”
In September 2023, Waters left a touch upon one in all O’Reilly’s Instagram posts, saying, “nice feet,” screenshots present. O’Reilly despatched him an offended response saying he was bombarding her with messages that didn’t relate to their skilled relationship and asking him what he wished.
However when O’Reilly shared the change in her work WhatsApp group, her bosses scolded her for upsetting a shopper, and had an prolonged back-and-forth on one of the simplest ways to fix the connection, together with drafting an apology for O’Reilly to ship to Waters, in line with the grievance.
“[Christine] this isn’t cool,” McCathie texted, in line with screenshots. “He’s our client and is important to us.”
She later requested, “Am I ever going to see another order from him now after that message?”
“There is this view that you know what you are getting into as a woman. You are expected to play the game,” O’Reilly advised Bloomberg. “It’s slimy and disgusting.”
For Citigroup, the case is the second go well with prior to now 12 months alleging sexual harassment inside its equities buying and selling division. In November, a managing director alleged {that a} prime fairness banker in Citi’s North American markets division threatened her and her youngsters if she continued to refuse his advances, and her lawsuit accuses the financial institution of permitting a “notoriously hostile” tradition towards girls to develop in its equities division. Citi is searching for to have the costs dismissed.
O’Reilly continues to be employed by ICAP, and has been on a depart of absence since earlier this 12 months when she filed a proper grievance with the brokerage.
“I know this will be a nail in the coffin for my broking career,” she advised Bloomberg. “I just hope that if people read these things, they realize it is wrong, it is so wrong.”
