Authorities searched the offices of HSBC Holdings Plc’s Swiss private bank in Geneva yesterday as part of a money laundering probe. 

HSBC Holdings Plc chief executive Stuart Gulliver offered “sincerest apologies” following fresh details of how the bank’s Swiss unit helped customers evade taxes.

HSBC has issued a public apology amid a political row over its Swiss private banking arm, saying it has “no appetite” to deal with clients seeking to dodge tax.

Media leaks on HSBC accounts held in Switzerland “are only the tip of the iceberg”, Herve Falciani, the former HSBC employee who supplied information on the bank’s clients and their tax situation, has told French daily Le Parisien.

A bank worker stole information on 24,000 HSBC Swiss account holders around the world, leaving some facing the threat of legal action by tax inspectors in their home countries.