HSBC’s Swiss private bank division is downsizing its North Africa and Israel teams after a former employee found guilty of laundering money for Moroccan drug dealers, according to Reuters.
The Mediterranean and Israel business, known as Medis, had managed up to US$8 billion and had between 12 and 15 employees, a source close to the company told Reuters.
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"We have restructured the business dramatically. That will see the majority of clients leave." However, he declined to say how many staff would remain," Reuters quoted HSBC spokesman Medard Schoenmaeckers as saying.
A former HSBC banker, fired after an internal investigation last year, was convicted in January of laundering money through Swiss bank accounts for Moroccan drug smugglers, along with his brother who worked for a Geneva-based asset manager.
"We conducted a strategic review of the Mediterranean business, partly driven by internal investigations that started last year. The investigation was triggered by a criminal case involving one of its bankers," Schoenmaeckers added.
