HSBC €31,7 million trader ‘chat room’ cartel fine upheld by EU court

The European judges dismissed HSBC’s procedural challenge against the cartel fine imposed by the European Commission in 2021.

The EU General Court on Wednesday upheld a fine slapped on HSBC for online trader collusion with other banks to manipulate euro interest rate derivatives, dismissing a procedural challenge against the sanction.

In 2016, the European Commission fined Crédit Agricole, HSBC and JPMorgan Chase for participating in a euro interest rate derivatives cartel, after finding traders colluded by manipulating key Euribor euro interbank offered rates.

The exchanges took place online in corporate chat-rooms and instant messaging services.

HSBC was fined €33,6 million while Deutsche Bank, RBS and Société Générale which were involved in the same cartel, came to an agreement with the Commission by admitting their roles, and cartel whistle-blower Barclays was spared a sanction.

HSBC challenged the decision and in 2019 the General Court annulled the fine on the ground that the methodology used by the Commission to calculate it was inadequate.

Then in 2021, the EU antitrust enforcer imposed a new fine of €31,7 million prompting the bank to challenge the decision again, this time claiming that the Commission’s decision was adopted outside a 10-year limitation period of running from the end of the infringement.

In 2023, the Court of Justice dismissed part of the HSBC challenge denying its participation in the cartel, leaving aside the action seeking the annulment of the fine.

In today’s ruling the general court also confirmed the fine saying that under EU law “the limitation period is to be suspended for as long as the decision of the Commission is the subject of proceedings pending before one of the EU Courts”. As a result, the fine was found to be squarely within the limitation period and was legal.