HSBC Wealth Executive Claims Bank Downplayed WhatsApp Incident

An HSBC Holdings Plc manager suing the bank for discrimination has claimed the lender downplayed compliance issues including the unauthorized use of WhatsApp in its US wealth unit.

Monique Thacker, who is of Indian origin and was hired as chief administrative officer for US wealth management in 2013, said she was passed over for jobs in favor of White colleagues and faced retaliation from her superiors after flagging potential regulatory breaches, according to a lawsuit filed in New York.

Two private banking employees were found to be using WhatsApp in April despite a prohibition on using the messaging platform to ...