News
printRelated News
Facing parliamentary criticism, HSBC's top executives conceded Wednesday to "unacceptable" failures of its Swiss private banking unit that led to likely account abuses and subsequent reputational damage.
London-based HSBC Holdings Plc could find itself paying more to rectify past compliance problems following disclosures this week about the bank's services for clients with criminal ties, according to analysts.
A number of large U.S. and international banks are dropping customer accounts and services tied to high-risk geographical regions and lines of business in response to regulatory pressure, including enforcement actions.
Facing mounting regulatory pressure in the past year, several multinational banks are weighing whether to scale back their cash letter processing and other services for some of their foreign counterparts, say compliance professionals.
Scrutiny of HSBC Securities Centers on Suspicious Activity Reporting, Transaction Monitoring: Source
Examiners from the nation's top regulators of broker-dealers are investigating whether HSBC Securities USA sufficiently scrutinized and reported suspicious transactions, according to an individual with knowledge of the matter.
A "quantum leap" in efforts to improve global financial transparency, including the passage of a U.S. anti-tax evasion law, has mitigated the compliance risks of offshore banking centers in recent years, says Martin Livingston, a partner at the Cayman Islands branch of law firm Maples and Calder.
U.S. lawmakers called for testimony from federal investigators Thursday as part of an effort to push for more aggressive punishment of individuals and financial institutions that aid money launderers and sanctions dodgers.
Criticisms of the U.S. Justice Department's apparent decision to forego indictments of HSBC and its employees misses a larger point: the department probably couldn't have won convictions if it tried, say prosecutors.
The U.S. government's landmark case against HSBC Holdings Plc for knowingly turning a blind eye to financial crime is seemingly fated to end much as it began: complex and messy.
Standard Chartered Bank's pending settlement with U.S. authorities for violating sanctions against Iran demonstrates the high-stakes compliance challenge inherent in holding U.S. dollar clearing accounts, say analysts.
Expected criminal and civil settlements over anti-money laundering lapses will likely cost HSBC Bank USA $1.5 billion or "significantly" more, the financial institution said in a regulatory filing Monday.
In the wake of regulatory crackdowns and multiple criminal probes, financial institutions operating in Mexico are spending millions of dollars to upgrade their anti-money laundering programs, say bank staff.
Time constraints and poor communication have hindered federal bank examiners in identifying broad compliance lapses, and prompted them to give unnecessarily challenging mandates to the financial institutions they oversee.
The U.S. regulator of national banks has moved quickly to address congressional criticisms raised in July that it laxly enforces anti-money laundering rules, according to federal officials and compliance officers.
The New York banking regulator that imposed an unprecedented $340 million penalty on a London-based bank this month is likely to be equally tough on six other foreign banks identified as being the subject of similar investigations, say current and former government officials.
Most news accounts of Tuesday's U.S. Senate inquiry into HSBC Holding Plc's compliance failings led with the bank's anti-money laundering compliance chief's announced resignation before lawmakers. But what he meant, it turns out, is that he is only taking another job inside the bank.
HSBC Holdings Plc's compliance chief will step down from his current role, following allegations that the bank failed to better police the anti-money laundering programs of its subsidiaries and affiliates.
The U.S. Treasury Department's regulator of large banks will revise how it examines for anti-money laundering compliance within months, the agency's chief told a congressional panel Tuesday.
Poor anti-money laundering controls on affiliates and problematic oversight allowed a global bank to process tens of trillions of dollars with little to no compliance checks, according to a U.S. Senate subcommittee.
U.S. senators will question representatives from HSBC Holdings Plc and its financial regulator next Tuesday over the findings of an unreleased report outlining concerns about the bank's anti-money laundering compliance program.
