FTSE 100 falls as StanChart, HSBC slide on 'FinCEN' report

A slide in HSBC and Standard Chartered shares hit the FTSE 100 on Monday as reports said they and other banks moved allegedly illicit funds over nearly two decades, while a surge in COVID-19 cases raised the spectre of another round of lockdowns. Shares of HSBC Holdings Plc, already trading at decade lows, slid 3.2%.

A slide in HSBC and Standard Chartered shares hit the FTSE 100 on Monday as reports said they and other banks moved allegedly illicit funds over nearly two decades, while a surge in COVID-19 cases raised the spectre of another round of lockdowns. Shares of HSBC Holdings Plc, already trading at decade lows, slid 3.2%. Standard Chartered Plc also dropped 3.2% to its lowest since 1998.

The reports by BuzzFeed and other media were based on leaked suspicious activity reports (SARs) filed by banks and other financial firms with the U.S. Department of Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCen). The blue-chip FTSE 100 was down 1.7%, with travel and leisure stocks also among the biggest decliners on news that Prime Minister Boris Johnson was pondering a second national lockdown to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The mid-cap FTSE 250 lost 1.4%. The world's largest exhibitions group, Informa Plc, gained 2.9% even after it reported a half-year operating loss. The stock was among only a handful of gainers on the FTSE 100 in early trading.

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