Major problems have emerged in the anti-money-laundering procedures of the Irish division of HSBC Bank, which manages more than €20 billion in assets. The Sunday Business Post has learned that the bank has installed a new series of money laundering checks after issues were discovered with its existing procedures.
Under Irish law, banks are obliged to store hard copies of client details such as passport numbers, utility bills and other forms of identification. The bank then passes that information on to the authorities if a suspicious transaction occurs. When HSBC appointed a new compliance officer last November, it emerged that it could not locate a number of documents. It is understood there has since been contact between the bank and the Financial Regulator about the issue.
HSBC’s money laundering problems go back many years in countries other than Ireland according to US consumer watchdog group Household - HSBC Watch.
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