Three former HSBC staff have been charged with accepting bribes to help customers open bank accounts without jumping the queue. Each client was referred by an insurance agent.
Chan Fu-kwan, 32; Mike Chan, 29; and Bernie Yau, 33, were relationship managers at an HSBC Causeway Bay branch at the time of the breaches in 2024, according to in a press release Thursday from the Independent Commission Against Corruption.
| 💡 Under the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance, it is illegal to disclose details of investigations launched by the Independent Commission Against Corruption, or the identity of the individuals involved, unless it is officially disclosed. |
The trio faced a total of six bribery charges on Wednesday – five for conspiring for an agent to accept an advantage and one for an agent accepting an advantage.
They were not authorized to process account applications themselves, but were tasked with processing bank account applications for those queuing up at the branch.
“The charges allege that in 2024, Chan Fu-kwan accepted bribes from an insurance agent, amounting to between HK$1,000 and HK$1,200 per referred customer, to facilitate the opening of bank accounts for those customers,” the anti-corruption watchdog said.
He also alleged that Chan Fu-kwan referred some clients to colleagues Mike Chan and Bernie Yau “for assistance in opening the account and offered bribes ranging from HK$300 to HK$500 per client referred to them”.
The ICAC investigation alleged that Chan Fu-kwan accepted over HK$35,000 in bribes, seeking help from Mike Chan and Bernie Yau when he was unable to handle such clients himself.
The watchdog also said they found Mike Chan had allegedly placed bets worth HK$120,000 with an online bookie. Accordingly, he was also charged on Wednesday with one count of betting with a bookie, contrary to section 8 of the Gambling Ordinance.
ICAC said HSBC had co-operated fully with the investigation.
All three were released on bail and will appear in the Eastern Magistrate’s Court on Friday.
Under the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance, those convicted of conspiring for an agent to accept advantages face up to seven years in prison and a fine of HK$500,000.
