HSBC could face U.S. legal action over Swiss accounts
Source: Reuters
HSBC could face U.S. legal action over Swiss accounts
BY STEVE SLATER, JOSHUA FRANKLIN AND ARUNA VISWANATHA
LONDON/ZURICH/WASHINGTON Tue Feb 10, 2015 12:20pm EST
(Reuters) - HSBC Holdings Plc (HSBA.L) faces investigation by U.S. authorities and an inquiry by British lawmakers after admitting failings by its Swiss private bank that may have allowed some customers to dodge taxes.
U.S. prosecutors have stepped up efforts to establish whether HSBC, the world's second largest bank, helped Americans evade taxes after media reports said the bank had helped wealthy customers conceal millions of dollars of assets.
U.S. authorities are also probing whether HSBC manipulated currency rates, and a U.S. law enforcement official said on Monday the investigations could prompt the Department of Justice to revisit a 2012 deferred prosecution agreement with the bank.
The agreement was part of a $1.9 billion settlement that allowed HSBC to avoid criminal charges after it was found to have helped move hundreds of millions of dollars in illicit drug money through the U.S. financial system.
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http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/10/us-hsbc-leak-taxavoidance-idUSKBN0LD01H20150210