Barclays, which yesterday announced improved profits at its wealth and investment arm, disclosed it was under a fresh US probe over possible violations of anti-corruption laws.

The London-listed bank has been told by the US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission that they are looking at whether Barclays’ relationships with third parties who help the firm win and retain business comply with the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

“Barclays is investigating and fully co-operating with the DOJ and SEC,” it said in a statement today.

Meanwhile, the bank announced that the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Office of Enforcement (FERC Staff) has been investigating Barclays’ power trading in the western US, covering a period from late 2006 through 2008. On 25 October 2012, the FERC told Barclays that it has authorised the issuance of a public Order to Show Cause and Notice of Proposed Penalties against Barclays in relation to this matter, the Barclays statement said.

Barclays intends to vigorously defend the issue, it said.

The news comes as the bank has been pushing to restore its battered reputation in the wake of the interbank interest rate rigging scandal, which led to the resignation in late summer of then-chief executive Robert Diamond, the departure of other senior bankers, and a combined £290 million ($467 million) penalty imposed by UK and US regulators.

Other banks have also been implicated in the LIBOR-rigging affair, which has rocked confidence in the City of London’s financial markets and called for reform of the inter-bank interest rate system.

Third Quarter Results

The wealth and investment management business of Barclays reported an adjusted pre-tax profit of £79 million (around $127 million) in the third quarter of 2012, up from £65 million a year ago.

For the bank as a whole, total adjusted pre-tax profit stood at £1.727 billion, up from £1.337 billion a year ago.

At the end of September, Barclays’ wealth and investment division saw its margins improve slightly, with a cost-income ratio of 83 per cent, contracting from 86 per cent a year before.

Total client assets rose to £177.6 billion at the end of September from £176.1 billion at the end of June this year. The gains principally reflected gains in the high net worth business, Barclays said.