Former banker sues HSBC for denying him a bonus, after he helped clients cheat on taxes
Rajesh Parmar accuses HSBC Private Bank UK of having a ‘closed mind’ when it decided not to give him a bonus, according to his court filing
London — A former HSBC Holdings banker filed a lawsuit after being told he couldn’t have his bonus because he helped clients cheat on their taxes. The bank responded by countersuing him for wasting its time. Rajesh Parmar is suing HSBC Private Bank UK for more than £1.8m in unpaid bonuses and damages, accusing it of "arbitrary, perverse and capricious conduct" when it told him in 2016, that it would not pay his bonus, according to his lawsuit, which was filed in September and released this week. Parmar was laid off in 2012. The bank says Parmar, who headed an HSBC Private Bank business unit for south Asia, helped Sanjay Sethi — a former client — evade taxes. In 2013, Sethi pleaded guilty to hiding as much as $4.7m from the US Internal Revenue Service. HSBC has been caught up in tax-evasion probes around the world and earlier this week agreed to pay €300m to settle a French criminal investigation related to allegations the bank helped clients hide assets in its Swiss private bank. Th...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.