The fine was handed out by the Financial Conduct Association (FCA), which noted that the bank had ‘risked substantial prejudice to the interests of justice,’ as it failed to reveal what it knew about what was happening at the HBOS branch at Reading between 2003 and 2007. Since the offences took place HBOS has become part of Lloyds Banking Group (LBG).
Moreover, the fraud saw the bank and a series of small businesses drained of around GBP 245 million in unwarranted loans, thus it is said to have left hundreds of people in severe financial difficulty.
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