August 4, 2010

Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; editing by Michael Shields

LONDON (Reuters) - American authorities are investigating the U.S. division of global banking group HSBC <0005.HK> over its compliance with anti-money laundering procedures, according to a regulatory filing.

In the filing to the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), which was posted on Monday, HSBC USA Inc stated it has received subpoenas and other requests for information as part of the probe.

HSBC said in the filing that it was the subject of ongoing examinations by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, the U.S. Attorney's Office and the U.S. Department of Justice.

"These examinations and inquiries pertain to, among other matters, our global banknotes business and our foreign correspondent banking business, and our compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act, Anti-Money Laundering and Office of Foreign Assets Control requirements," the filing said.

"In response to these matters, we have taken several initial steps to address the concerns of our regulators by enhancing risk management and strengthening processes and the supporting infrastructure in our Bank Secrecy Act and Anti-Money Laundering functions," it added.

An HSBC spokesman in London reiterated the company's comments in the SEC filing that HSBC was fully co-operating with the U.S. authorities on the matter.

The U.S. Department of Justice has already opened a criminal investigation into whether some HSBC clients may have failed to disclose offshore accounts, lawyers familiar with the probe told Reuters last month.

HSBC has said it fully supports government moves for appropriate disclosure by its citizens and does not condone or assist tax evasion.