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HSBC takes to WeChat social network to deny ‘framing’ Huawei in US investigations as it comes under attack in Chinese media
- Taking to social media, HSBC sought to debunk a ‘misinterpretation of the facts’ by mainland media about the inquiry
- Bank said it does not harbour hostility to Huawei and did not ‘frame’ the telecommunications company
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HSBC took to Chinese social media on Saturday to debunk what it calls “misinterpretation of facts” and defend its role in the United States’ inquiry of Huawei Technologies, as it faced blistering criticism this week in several of mainland China’s newspapers.
Scrutiny of Huawei began well before the bank’s involvement in late 2016, London-based HSBC said in a social media post on Saturday, adding that it did not prompt US investigations of the Chinese telecommunications company.
US investigations led to Canada’s arrest of Huawei’s chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou in December 2018 at the behest of the American Department of Justice (DOJ). Meng, the daughter of Huawei’s founder, is under house arrest in Vancouver, where she is mounting her defence against an extradition to the United States to face US charges.
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“HSBC does not have any hostility towards Huawei and did not ‘frame’ Huawei,” HSBC said in a post on its WeChat account in Chinese. “The information provided by HSBC Group to the DOJ was done so pursuant to formal demand. In response to US DOJ’s requests for information, HSBC Group simply presented the objective facts. HSBC did not “fabricate” evidence or “hide” facts. And HSBC would never distort the facts or seek to harm any of our clients for our own gain.”
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HSBC took to China’s social media after the nationalistic tabloid Global Times and the Communist Party’s mouthpiece newspaper People’s Daily accused the bank of “fabricating” evidence and “maliciously framing” Meng. HSBC should be prepared for “harsh punishment” from Beijing, Global Times wrote, quoting an unidentified observer, and raised the spectre of the bank being placed on an unreliable entities list in China.
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In court filings in Vancouver on Thursday, Meng’s lawyers asked a Canadian court to halt extradition proceedings against her, accusing US President Donald Trump of interfering in the case for political purposes, and claiming that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was supporting the use of Meng as a “bargaining chip” in trade negotiations.
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