Yahoo – AFP,
November 18, 2014
Brussels (AFP) - Belgian prosecutors charged a subsidiary of British bank HSBC on Monday with fraud and money-laundering worth hundreds of millions of euros, mainly for diamond dealers in the industry's international hub of Antwerp.
Belgium charges HSBC with fraud, laundering: prosecutor |
Brussels (AFP) - Belgian prosecutors charged a subsidiary of British bank HSBC on Monday with fraud and money-laundering worth hundreds of millions of euros, mainly for diamond dealers in the industry's international hub of Antwerp.
Swiss
subsidiary HSBC Private Bank SA (Suisse), which is wholly owned by the Asia-focused
banking giant, allegedly helped hundreds of clients cheat the Belgian state, a
statement from the prosecutors said.
HSBC said
in a statement that it "will continue to cooperate to the fullest extent
possible".
It is the
latest in a series of international investigations into practices ranging from
currency exchange rigging, Libor rigging and product mis-selling that has
damaged the reputation of major banks.
Banking
practices also had helped to spark the 2008 global financial crisis that led to
a worldwide recession.
The Belgian
prosecutor said the HSBC subsidiary was being charged with serious and
organised fraud, money-laundering, criminal conspiracy and illegally
functioning as a financial intermediary.
It said the
allegations "date back several years and involve soliciting and managing
the assets of wealthy clients, mainly from the Antwerp diamond industry."
"The
Swiss bank is also suspected of knowingly favouring and encouraging fiscal
fraud, giving privileged clients to offshore accounts, particularly in Panama
and the Virgin Islands."
Antwerp, a
port in Belgian's northern Flemish-speaking region, is home to the global
dealers syndicate for diamonds.
In 2012,
Belgium's justice minister ordered an inquiry into a growing controversy over
possible tax fraud among diamond traders in Antwerp after French authorities
handed a list of dozens of dealers suspected of placing assets in Switzerland.
HSBC apologised for its lapses, said reforms had been put in place, and
admitted it was 'horrified' by what it found. Photograph: Gary Cameron/Reuters |
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