HSBC will pay $352m settlement
HSBC Holdings Plc will pay about 300 million euros ($352 million) to settle a criminal investigation by the French government into allegations it helped clients evade taxes, the second-biggest corporate charge levied by an authority in the nation. The bank acknowledged past weaknesses in controls at the Swiss private bank unit and said it had enhanced its anti-money laundering and tax compliance procedures, according to an emailed statement. HSBC, Europe’s largest lender, was