In February 2015 the ICIJ and media partners, including Le Monde, published Swiss Leaks. The files had been taken by a former HSBC IT employee and covered more than 100,000 clients from around 200 countries, with accounts holding more than $100 billion.
The ICIJ stressed that having a Swiss bank account is not illegal and that there is no indication most clients did anything wrong. The reporting described how the bank had served clients who used it to keep money hidden from tax authorities, and HSBC admitted failings in its controls.
The UK angle: HMRC obtained data on thousands of UK-linked clients in 2010. In February 2015 HMRC’s chief executive, Lin Homer, told the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee that only one person from the list had been prosecuted. Committee chair Margaret Hodge called HMRC’s response “pathetic”. Homer said much of the evidence was too weak to support prosecutions.
HSBC’s position
HSBC acknowledged past failings in controls at its Swiss private bank.
The evidence
4 sources- Exhibit ASwiss Leaks: Murky cash sheltered by bank secrecyInternational Consortium of Investigative Journalists · February 2015 · icij.org
- Exhibit BHSBC admits Swiss bank failings over client taxesReuters via Business Standard · 9 February 2015 · business-standard.com
- Exhibit CUK revenue chief denies failure to act against tax-dodging clients of HSBCThe Irish Times · February 2015 · irishtimes.com
- Exhibit DHMRC underused HSBC data, PAC claimsAccountancy Age · 12 February 2015 · accountancyage.com
Last checked 2 November 2026. Something wrong or out of date? Tell us and we’ll correct it.