HSBC and Citibank are struggling to meet new regulations on banks based outside of the European Economic Area
High street banks in the UK that are based outside of the European Economic Area are rushing to comply with new regulations that could leave senior bankers based abroad to be held accountable for failings in branches.
From March 2016 managers at banks such as Citibank based in the US could be made to be personally responsible or even criminally liable for regulatory problems, consultancy Bovill has warned.
HSBC could be subject to these rules, known as the Senior Managers Regime, if it decides to move its headquarters to Hong Kong or the US.
Mark Spiers, head of banking at Bovill, said: “A senior manager based in South East Asia or the US caught under the regulations will want to assure themselves that the UK branch meets the regulators expectations on management and controls.”
The rules have been criticised for putting the UK at a competitive disadvantage compared to the US and Europe by industry body, The British Bankers' Association.
In October, the FCA announced that Senior Managers Regime will be extended to include all financial services firms in 2018.