HSBC’s Irish arm sued for $540m over Madoff

The Irish arm of HSBC is being sued for more than half a billion dollars arising from the massive Ponzi scheme run by jailed US fraudster Bernard Madoff.

Defender Ltd, an investment fund with registered offices in the British Virgin Islands, has sued HSBC Institutional Trust Services (Ireland) Ltd, with registered offices at Grand Canal Square, Dublin, for $540m (€399m) over alleged breaches of an agreement relating to custody of funds.

The case is centred on the role of banks’ as “custodians” to investment funds that deposited monies with Madoff entities.