The European Commission disclosed the probe after HSBC Holdings said in a filing earlier this month that it had received a request for information from the EU in April. “The commission is currently investigating alleged anti-competitive behaviour in precious metals spot trading” in Europe, Ricardo Cardoso, a spokesman for the regulator, said yesterday.
HSBC said in its half-year earnings report on August 3 that the commission had sought details about its precious-metals operations and that it’s “cooperating with the authorities”.
US prosecutors have been examining whether at least 10 banks, including Barclays, JPMorgan Chase & Co and Deutsche Bank, manipulated prices of precious metals such as silver and gold.
Full content: Bloomberg
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