By Elena Vardon
HSBC has been fined 57.4 million pounds ($73.0 million) by the U.K. bank regulator, which said there were failings in the protection of customer deposits over several years.
The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) on Tuesday said it fined HSBC Bank and HSBC UK Bank for not properly implementing the Depositor Protection Rules requirements, and the inaccurate identification of deposits that were eligible for protection under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
“This fine, the second highest imposed by the PRA, reflects the seriousness of the failings,” the regulator said, though it added that it doesn’t consider the breaches to have been deliberate or reckless.
These happened between 2015 and 2022 at HSBC Bank and between 2018 and 2021 at HSBC UK Bank, it said.
“HSBC is pleased to have resolved this historic matter,” HSBC said in a statement. “The PRA’s final notice recognizes the Bank’s co-operation with the investigation, as well as our efforts to fully resolve these issues,” the British bank added.
The PRA said the penalty was reduced given the lender’s cooperation with the investigation, its early admission and agreement to resolve the issue. The fine would have otherwise amounted to GBP96.5 million, it said.
Write to Elena Vardon at [email protected]
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