By PETER WONACOTT

The father of Kweku Adoboli, the trader accused of losing $2 billion in unauthorized bets at UBS AG, said his son lived a frugal life—even refusing a suggestion one time to buy a car because he didn't want to pay for parking.

"We are not flamboyant. That is not how we are," said John Adoboli, 63 years old. "We are simple people."

The younger Mr. Adoboli, 31, was arrested early Thursday in London after UBS contacted police and accused its trader of fraud. On Friday, he was formally charged with the fraud. The disclosure of the massive losses has renewed scrutiny of the Swiss bank's risk controls.



Associated Press
Kweku Adoboli, second from left, walks to be taken away in a security van after appearing at the City of London Magistrates Court in London Friday.

In a telephone interview from Ghana, the elder Mr. Adoboli said he first heard of his son's arrest later Thursday, after his son's girlfriend called from London. The news jolted the family and stunned his father, who often asked his son to return to Ghana and "offer his services" to the fast-growing west African country.

His son wasn't ready to leave UBS, though.

"It was stressful, but he said he was enjoying work," recalled Mr. Adoboli of their phone conversations. "Sometimes I would call before I went to bed and he would say: 'Daddy, I'm still at work.'"

Mr. Adoboli hasn't spoken to his son since Thursday's arrest—the calls just go to voice mail. The father said he plans to travel to London next week and try to meet with his son and hear his story.

"I feel bad. Our name is now everywhere in the world. I go to the Internet…" His voice catches. "We are devastated. We are shattered."

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Mr. Adoboli, who retired a few years ago as a personnel officer in the United Nations peacekeeping operations, said the family left Ghana when his son was four years old. A succession of foreign posts followed, including Israel, Iraq and Cambodia.

In an effort to bring some stability to his 12-year-old son's life, they enrolled Kweku in a Quaker boarding school, called Ackworth. Mr. Adoboli said his son excelled in soccer and studies, and at one point, was named "head boy."

His Ghanaian father received such reports with pride. "He was head boy among a lot of white boys."

Kweku went on to attend Nottingham University, and was hired as an intern at UBS after a recruiter from the investment bank visited the campus. Upon graduating in 2003, the younger Mr. Adoboli returned to UBS, his father said.

Mr. Adoboli said he didn't know much about what Kweku did at the bank, but that his son was elated when he shifted into a new role as a trader from supporting operations, so he assumed it was a promotion. He suggested his son buy a car, but Kweku said he enjoyed riding his bike for the exercise and abhorred parking fees.

Given their respective jobs, father and son were rarely in the same place. But after he retired from the U.N., Mr. Adoboli appealed for his son to return to Ghana and help his home country. "He was acquiring a lot of training, and I asked him to come back home and use it. He said: 'Not yet.'"


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