Quattrone trial delayed

Frank Quattrone could face up to 25 years in prison

The trial of former Credit Suisse First Boston (CFSB) banker Frank Quattrone on obstruction of justice charges has been suspended until Wednesday.

The judge in charge of the case said on Monday that he was postponing the hearing for two days after a member of the jury was prevented from attending because his wife was giving birth.

The delay comes three days after the jury, tasked with deciding whether Mr Quattrone tried to hinder an official investigation into allegations of share "spinning" at CSFB, told the court it had reached deadlock.

The judge had been expected to order the jury to reach consensus on Monday - a move seen by some legal experts as more likely to lead to a prosecution than an acquittal.

Dot.com guru

Mr Quattrone, who made his name by masterminding the stock market launch of high-profile dot.com era companies including Amazon and Cisco Systems, is accused of advising staff to delete e-mails sought by official investigators.

The investigators were probing allegations that CSFB and other Wall Street banks allocated shares in sought-after internet flotations to favoured clients in return for lucrative investment banking contracts - a practice known as "spinning."

The jury has been deliberating since Wednesday last week, but has been unable to reach a verdict amid reports of sharp disagreements between its members.

Mr Quattrone, who is said to have made a personal fortune of $200m during the dot.com boom, faces a sentence of up to 25 years in jail and fines of $750,000 if found guilty on all charges.