HSBC under Fire: Millions in Losses Due to Lack of Security Measures

The Australian financial regulator ASIC has initiated legal action against the Australian branch of the international bank HSBC. The reason is the bank's failure to effectively respond to approximately 950 reports of customers potentially losing a total of nearly one million dollars or more. From January 2020 to August 2024, HSBC Australia reportedly took an average of 145 days to respond to reports of unauthorized payments and transactions. Between October 2023 and March 2024, losses amounted to an impressive A$16 million. In total, A$23 million are said to have been lost. ASIC criticizes that HSBC Australia lacked adequate control mechanisms to prevent unauthorized payments and to investigate them in a timely manner. The incident occurs at a time when Australian authorities and banks are intensifying measures against fraud cases in the banking sector. In the year up to September 2024, approximately 265,000 bank-related fraud cases were reported, causing losses of around A$306.5 million. Sarah Court, Deputy Chair of ASIC, commented that HSBC's failures were "widespread and systematic" and that the bank inadequately protected its customers. ASIC is seeking court findings, fines, and other actions against HSBC. A spokesperson for HSBC assured that the bank is reviewing the matters and cooperating with the authority.