Page 13 - HSBC (D) Case Study

designed to prevent dealings with Iran, Burma, North
Korea, Libya, Sudan, and Cuba. Moreover, it was feared

that such actions could have facilitated transactions on

behalf of terrorists

Actions taken to get around these safeguards in the

system may have facilitated transactions on behalf of not

only drug traffickers but also terrorists.

The Mexico debacle was only one of a number of

misconduct scandals that had hit HSBC in recent years.

These had included evidence that it helped wealthy

clients evade tax through its Swiss private bank and

allegations of rigging foreign exchange and precious

metals markets. (5)

“At HSBC, the bank did more than avert its eyes

to a few shady transactions. It repeatedly defied
government orders as it made a conscious,

years-long effort to completely stop
discriminating between illegitimate and

legitimate money.” (2)

CEO, Stuart Gulliver, said he was “profoundly sorry” and

accepted responsibility for past mistakes and insisted the

bank was now a “fundamentally different organisation”.