HSBC is fined £18m in Mexico

HSBC was yesterday fined $27.5m (£17.7m) in Mexico for the failings in its anti-money laundering systems that a US senate panel alleges enabled drug barons to launder money.

The fine came as the latest blow to the bank over the affair which has led to repeated calls from the Labour party for former chairman Lord Green to resign as trade minister.

HSBC said the fine by Mexico's National Banking and Securities Commission was due to "non-compliance with anti-money laundering systems and controls". It related to the late reporting of 1729 unusual transactions, failing altogether to report a further 39 unusual transactions and 21 administration failures.

The bank issued a statement apologising for its past failures. The scandal came on the heels of a litany of financial wrongdoing to have hit London banks in recent weeks.