JEROME KERVIEL was a high-flying trader at a Paris bank who juggled huge sums on international markets until he lost €4.9 billion (£4.1bn) in 2008 and was convicted of fraud and forgery. Now he’s a penniless pilgrim, hiking through northern Italy preaching against the tyranny of those same markets he used to master. His inspiration, he says, comes from Pope Francis.The rogue trader, who last month lost his appeal against a three-year sentence, says he discussed the excesses of global markets with the Pope in February, when he saw him after a Wednesday audience. Kerviel said the encounter inspired him to return to Paris on foot, depending on the kindness of others for food and lodging. “My meeting with the Pope was crucial,” he told Le Nouvel Observateur. &ldqu
03 April 2014, The Tablet
From pinstripes to poverty
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