British lawmaker Peter Hain said on Wednesday he has asked finance minister Philip Hammond to refer an unidentified UK bank to regulators for an investigation into possible involvement in alleged money laundering involving South Africa's Gupta family.
Hain hand delivered documents to Hammond on Tuesday that he said showed participation of an unidentified British bank in illegal transfers of funds from South Africa made by the Gupta family over the last few years.
The Guptas, a family of Indian-born businessmen in South Africa, are under scrutiny for their close ties to South African President Jacob Zuma and have been accused of unduly influencing the awarding of state tenders. The family has denied any wrongdoing and no charges have been filed.
"(I) named the British bank concerned and asked that he (Hammond) again refer these to the Serious Fraud Office, the National Crimes Agency, and the Financial Conduct Authority for investigation", Hain said in the House of Lords, according to a video on the British parliament's website.
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Read more:
[ HSBC, Standard Chartered may face UK inquiry over South Africa’s Gupta family ]
[ KPMG execs in South Africa leave over Gupta ]
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The unidentified bank is HSBC Holdings, the Financial Times reported, citing one person who has seen a letter Hain separately sent to the Treasury and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
HSBC spokeswoman Gillian James did not have an immediate comment and referred to chief executive Stuart Gulliver's remark on a post-earnings call on Monday.
"On the enquiries as a result of Lord Hain's letter to the chancellor, obviously we are responding to those enquiries that have come in from the FCA and also from South African authorities, and there is nothing more I can really add at this point in time," Gulliver said.
The FCA could not be reached for comment outside regular business hours.
This is not the first time Hain, a Labour politician, has asked for a scrutiny of British lenders' ties with the Guptas.
Hain asked the finance ministry in October to look into HSBC and Standard Chartered PLC's possible ties to the Gupta family and Zuma, and the FCA said it was in contact with those lenders.
The politician also wrote to Hammond in September requesting a probe of British banks' involvement in money-laundering in South Africa.
Confirmed bouts (more to be added)
Cory Sandhagen v Umar Nurmagomedov
Nick Diaz v Vicente Luque
Michael Chiesa v Tony Ferguson
Deiveson Figueiredo v Marlon Vera
Mackenzie Dern v Loopy Godinez
Tickets for the August 3 Fight Night, held in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, went on sale earlier this month, through www.etihadarena.ae and www.ticketmaster.ae.
THE 12 BREAKAWAY CLUBS
England
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur
Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus
Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid
A QUIET PLACE
Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Joseph Quinn, Djimon Hounsou
Director: Michael Sarnoski
Rating: 4/5
Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Almouneer
Started: 2017
Founders: Dr Noha Khater and Rania Kadry
Based: Egypt
Number of staff: 120
Investment: Bootstrapped, with support from Insead and Egyptian government, seed round of
$3.6 million led by Global Ventures
Masters of the Air
Directors: Cary Joji Fukunaga, Dee Rees, Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck, Tim Van Patten
Starring: Austin Butler, Callum Turner, Anthony Boyle, Barry Keoghan, Sawyer Spielberg
Rating: 2/5
Getting there and where to stay
Etihad Airways operates seasonal flights from Abu Dhabi to Nice Côte d'Azur Airport. Services depart the UAE on Wednesdays and Sundays with outbound flights stopping briefly in Rome, return flights are non-stop. Fares start from Dh3,315, flights operate until September 18, 2022.
The Radisson Blu Hotel Nice offers a western location right on Promenade des Anglais with rooms overlooking the Bay of Angels. Stays are priced from €101 ($114), including taxes.
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
How Alia's experiment will help humans get to Mars
Alia’s winning experiment examined how genes might change under the stresses caused by being in space, such as cosmic radiation and microgravity.
Her samples were placed in a machine on board the International Space Station. called a miniPCR thermal cycler, which can copy DNA multiple times.
After the samples were examined on return to Earth, scientists were able to successfully detect changes caused by being in space in the way DNA transmits instructions through proteins and other molecules in living organisms.
Although Alia’s samples were taken from nematode worms, the results have much bigger long term applications, especially for human space flight and long term missions, such as to Mars.
It also means that the first DNA experiments using human genomes can now be carried out on the ISS.
The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
Opening Rugby Championship fixtures: Games can be watched on OSN Sports
Saturday: Australia v New Zealand, Sydney, 1pm (UAE)
Sunday: South Africa v Argentina, Port Elizabeth, 11pm (UAE)