Senior executives at HSBC Holdings Plc were reportedly aware of an alleged plan formulated by the bank’s US unit to hire staff and illicitly obtain trade secrets from Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). This comes following the acquisition of the beleaguered SVB by First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. last year, according to a revised lawsuit recently filed in San Francisco.
The initial suit was filed by First Citizens in May, who claimed that David Sabow, a former SVB executive then employed by HSBC, helmed a scheme they have since dubbed ‘Project Colony.’ The objective of this operation was to hire a cohort of 42 SVB employees, as well as access confidential business information. In a new development, the lawsuit now purports that HSBC Chief Executive Officer Noel Quinn and Michael Roberts, head of the bank, were privy to the plan.
The detailed coverage of the unfolding legal proceedings can be found on Bloomberg Law.