![]() The bank is now facing questions from politicians, who are also taking aim at regulators over whether they can effectively hold executives to account. The FinCEN Files investigation reveals HSBC identified £1.5bn worth of suspicious transactions moving through accounts in Hong Kong between 20, including $900m linked to criminal activity.Īn internal HSBC report is released by the Zondo Commission inquiry in South Africa, suggesting the bank was aware of a money-laundering network operating through its Hong Kong bank. It is understood that some of the $4.2bn worth of payments routed through its accounts may have been legitimate. HSBC tells Australia’s financial crime agency that it may have broken anti money-laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws, after failing to report what allegedly amounted to thousands of transactions to the regulator. South Africa’s central bank fines HSBC 15m rand for failures in its systems " that inhibited HSBC from proactively detecting potential money laundering and the financing of terrorism”. The FCA has not disclosed the nature of those concerns. The UK's Financial Conduct Authority launches an investigation into HSBC over potential breaches of money laundering rules over concerns were raised by monitor installed by the US Department of Justice in 2012. It was the biggest financial penalty ever imposed by the Geneva authorities at the time, and followed journalistic investigations by publications including the Guardian. Swiss authorities order HSBC to pay 40m Swiss francs for “organisational deficiencies” that allowed money laundering to take place at the bank's Swiss subsidiary. It agrees to an independent monitoring programme lasting nearly five years. HSBC pays $1.9bn (£1.3bn) and signs a deferred prosecution agreement with the US Department of Justice after it was found to have violated US sanctions and admitted its accounts were used to launder money for criminal networks, including $881m for Mexican drug cartels. ![]() “We actively look for unusual activity and when we become aware of customer accounts being used to facilitate financial crime, we take appropriate action, including closing those accounts.”Īrgentina’s financial crimes unit fines HSBC 64m Argentinian pesos for failing to report suspicious transactions at its local bank. “HSBC is committed to preventing criminals from accessing the financial system,” the bank said. HSBC said in a statement that it was illegal to disclose information it had shared with government authorities, and said “specific discussions with our former monitor remain confidential”. “As far as I’m aware, this particular report … was never disclosed to the monitor,” they said, adding that this appeared to be a bigger money laundering network than any they had identified at the bank. They waited to be asked about it,” one ex-monitoring team member, who agreed to speak on the condition of anonymity, said. “HSBC never voluntarily disclosed money laundering to us. ![]() The bank, which is headquartered in London, would have been expected to disclose the information to an independent monitor brought in by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) in 2012, when criminal proceedings were deferred on condition the bank reform its anti-money laundering checks.Ī number of former members of the DoJ monitoring team say they were never made aware of the network, raising questions over whether HSBC was fully transparent with the monitor, which was meant to keep tabs on the bank as it tried to improve its anti-money laundering standards. The majority of funds passing through the network appeared to be from multiple users not connected to the Guptas. Money flow from Gupta-linked companies into this network was “contained and minimal”, the bank concluded, amounting to just £12m. When the report was circulated in 2017, 60 of these accounts were still open. The network was identified as involving 92 HSBC Hong Kong accounts that received $4.2bn worth of payments between 20, some of which may have been used for legitimate purposes. While tracing funds flowing from these companies, bank investigators uncovered what they suspected was a professional money laundering network controlled by unrelated parties. The report – which represents findings at the time – identified three companies with accounts at its Hong Kong branch that media reports had previously concluded were controlled by associates of the Gupta family. A redacted internal HSBC report, published last week by authorities in South Africa, suggests the bank uncovered the previously undisclosed multibillion-pound network as early as 2016, while it was trying to assess its potential exposure to the controversial Gupta family, who were embroiled in a national corruption scandal in South Africa.
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