June 1 (Bloomberg) — From their offices atop Tehran’s 15- story Sayeh Tower, HSBC Holdings Plc bankers have helped lend more than $825 million to the Iranian government, which the U.S. says sponsors terrorism and provided a haven to al-Qaeda members after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Half a world away in New York, where London-based HSBC is the biggest retail bank in the state, with 412 branches, the company takes deposits just two blocks from the site of the twin towers that were destroyed in the Sept. 11 attacks. HSBC is doing business in other countries that the U.S. says sponsor terrorism, including Libya, Sudan and Syria, through direct and indirect ties, according to bank documents and interviews with executives. HSBC also banked for the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein, according to a Central Intelligence Agency report published in October 2004.
HSBC also owns disgraced, stained and well-sued predatory lender Household International. According to consumer advocates at Household - HSBC Watch, Household International terrorized U.S. borrowers, and continues to terrorize credit card users with questionable business practices that impact one’s credit report.
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