Green regrets HSBC failings but will stay on
TRADE minister Lord Green yesterday admitted that he “regrets” HSBC’s failures in relation to alleged money laundering while he was in charge of the bank – but says he has no intention of resigning.
As HSBC’s former chairman and chief executive, Green has come under pressure to explain what he knew about the company’s compliance procedures following last week’s publication of a US Senate report that alleges the bank dealt with rogue nations and drug gangs under his watch.
“HSBC has expressed its regret that there were failures of implementation in [compliance], and I share that regret,” Green wrote to Chris Leslie, Labour’s shadow Treasury minister.
“HSBC has always sought to do the right thing, and when things go wrong, worked hard to put them right. I have sought to embody these values in my own work,” he added.
Green later told Sky News he had “no case to answer” over the money laundering allegations.
Business secretary Vince Cable gave the peer his backing: “He is a very good trade minister and that is what the Prime Minister hired him for and he is doing that job very well.”