HSBC accused of ‘blatant and indefensible’ forex fraud by ex-client

London-based HSBC currency traders will regularly front-run client orders to make additional profits as part of a “blatant and undefendable” scam, lawyer of currency manager ECU Group. Claimed in the London High Court.

The investment management company’s ECU submitted a closing submission at the end of Tuesday. 7 week trial He is suing HSBC over a currency transaction that took place over 15 years ago. The trial is the latest article in a global currency trading scandal that began nearly a decade ago, fined London-listed banks more than $ 600 million.

The ECU Group claims that HSBC’s Forex traders have misused confidential information about their transactions and used them for their own benefit between 2004 and 2006, identifying 52 transactions during that period. I am. The ECU was a client of HSBC at the time of the transaction. HSBC has denied all cheating.

ECU adviser Richard Risak QC said he had “evidence of a smoke-breathing gun” that HSBC currency traders tried to profit from client orders, and HSBC head Stuart. Pointed out a chat between Scott at the Bloomberg Terminal. Paul Michelko, who has been responsible for cash FX in Europe and FX in the Americas since January 2010. In exchange, Scott told his counterparts that his team was always making money from so-called stop-loss orders. Front running.

“HSBC’s London trading desk boasts that clients can place their orders ahead of schedule, regardless of their sophistication or the care they take when monitoring their orders,” Lisak told the court.

Lissax also tried to hide their actions after HSBC traded with U.S. authorities in January 2018 and another senior bank staff member Scott and Mark Johnson fraudulently traded ahead of customers in 2011. He said he admitted that he had done so. Johnson was found guilty by a US fraud jury in 2017, and Scott was successfully accused. Fought a delivery request From the United States.

Lissak added that none of the traders involved had testified in the trial, depriving the ECU of the opportunity to ask questions. “This is a blatant and inexcusable scam tolerated by one of HSBC’s finest forex traders at the time,” Lisack added.

HSBC lawyers argue that ECUs should make these claims sooner. HSBC’s representative Kenneth MacLean QC, in his closing argument in writing, is based on an “unnatural and misunderstood legal framework” rather than an entire ECU proceeding in a reasonable time frame. Insisted.

“The HSBC Parties did not commit the alleged misconduct,” McLean wrote. “The proceedings filed by the ECU of widespread systematic misconduct by HSBC parties have always been ambitious.[and there was a]There are no proceedings properly filed to that effect. ”

He added that the ECU proceedings were not supported by court evidence as bank traders took “fully legitimate” steps in processing these orders to give clients the best results. I did.

The ECU also states that the bank trader is using information about the client’s transactions to make personal transactions for his own benefit and that he is overcharging the order without disclosing it to the ECU. Insists.

HSBC lawyers will make closing arguments on Wednesday.