Business
HSBC being probed by Indian tax department, worried over penalties
London, Feb 23
HSBC bank is being probed by
tax administration, regulatory and law enforcement authorities around
the world, including India, and Europe's largest lender is concerned
about the amounts of penalties that could be imposed on it for its
alleged money-laundering activities, the bank said in its annual report
Monday.
HSBC listed investigations into the bank's Geneva branch
affair, saying that India, Belgium, France, Argentina and Switzerland
were among the countries which have initiated inquiries into the alleged
irregularities by the bank's Swiss arm.
It warned that more
could follow and that there "is a high degree of uncertainty as to the
terms on which they will be resolved and the timing of such resolutions,
including the amounts of fines, penalties and/or forfeitures imposed on
HSBC, which could be significant".
"In light of the recent
media attention regarding these matters, it is possible that other tax
administration, regulatory or law enforcement authorities will also
initiate or enlarge similar investigations or regulatory proceedings,"
the bank said.
The bank reported profit before tax in 2014 at
$18.7 billion, which was $3.9 billion lower than in the previous year.
"This reflected lower gains from disposals and reclassifications, and
the negative effect of other significant items, including fines,
settlements, UK customer redress and associated provisions, totalling
$3.7 bn," it said.
"We deeply regret and apologise for the
conduct and compliance failures highlighted which were in contravention
of our own policies as well as expectations of us," said D.J. Flint, the
bank's group chairman.