(Bloomberg) — Australia’s markets watchdog sued HSBC Bank of Australia Ltd. for failing to protect customers who lost millions of dollars in scams.
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HSBC received about 950 reports of unauthorized transactions between January 2020 and August 2024, resulting in customer losses of about A$23 million ($14.6 million), according to an Australian Securities and Investments Commission statement Monday. Around A$16 million of this occurred in the six months from October 2023 to March 2024.
“ASIC alleges HSBC Australia failed to have adequate controls in place to prevent and detect unauthorized payments and failed to comply with its obligations to investigate customer reports of unauthorized transactions within the specified time frames required, and to promptly reinstate their banking services in a timely manner,” according to the statement.
ASIC said the bank on average took 145 days to investigate client reports that they had been scammed, the statement said. ASIC said HSBC Australia’s failings were widespread and systemic.
“We are considering the matters raised and will continue to co-operate and work constructively with ASIC,” a spokesperson for HSBC said in an email. “Protecting our customers from scammers remains a top priority. We continue to make significant investments in our fraud and scam prevention, detection, and response.”
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(Adds comment from HSBC in fifth paragraph)
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