HSBC investigation has delayed international payment - what to do?

brianposter

colsten said:

The guys orchestrating money laundering are most likely fully aware what suspension of accounts means. Their money mules not so much, as many of them don't even know they are money laundering ("was just helping a friend" etc etc).

Exactly what is achieved by not telling these people that it looks like they are money laundering and asking for an explanation ?

IlPartigiano

Update: I called today and apparently the payment was actually cancelled on the 13th and the funds returned by the HSBC. Incredible scenes.

colsten

brianposter said:

colsten said:

The guys orchestrating money laundering are most likely fully aware what suspension of accounts means. Their money mules not so much, as many of them don't even know they are money laundering ("was just helping a friend" etc etc).

Exactly what is achieved by not telling these people that it looks like they are money laundering and asking for an explanation ?

I'll spare you the explanation as you appear determined to rubbish investigative strategies anyway.

colsten

IlPartigiano said:

Update: I called today and apparently the payment was actually cancelled on the 13th and the funds returned by the HSBC. Incredible scenes.

Cancelled by whom, and why?

IlPartigiano

colsten said:

IlPartigiano said:

Update: I called today and apparently the payment was actually cancelled on the 13th and the funds returned by the HSBC. Incredible scenes.

Cancelled by whom, and why?

Cancelled by the HSBC because they claim there was a mismatch in the beneficiary name, which is strange because I've been receiving payments like this from the same firm since February. The payment went via bill.com and they (via my employer) asked me to confirm the beneficiary name (my own) which it seems matches what they already had on file.

My main issue is that it's taken them until the 25th of August to tell me this, after repeatedly telling me that they had no record of the payment at all, and then telling me that the payment was delayed and being investigated by their internal team. 

My employer reached out to both bill.com and the Bank of America last week to check the status of the payment and they both confirmed everything was good on their end so at this point I have no idea what's going on.

colsten

Sounds like a good reason for a formal complaint.

brianposter

colsten said:

brianposter said:

colsten said:

The guys orchestrating money laundering are most likely fully aware what suspension of accounts means. Their money mules not so much, as many of them don't even know they are money laundering ("was just helping a friend" etc etc).

Exactly what is achieved by not telling these people that it looks like they are money laundering and asking for an explanation ?

I'll spare you the explanation as you appear determined to rubbish investigative strategies anyway.

Perhaps, if you provided an explanation. I might develop a higher opinion of the "investigative strategy".

IlPartigiano

Further update for anyone who cares: neither bill.com nor Bank of America have received the money back from the HSBC (who apparently cancelled and returned the payment on the 13th) so I have no clue where the money is at this point.

bill.com have requested a trace to see where it is and have asked me to provide a cancellation confirmation from my bank. If anyone is able to advise how to go about that, I'd appreciate it.

born_again

IlPartigiano said:

Further update for anyone who cares: neither bill.com nor Bank of America have received the money back from the HSBC (who apparently cancelled and returned the payment on the 13th) so I have no clue where the money is at this point.

bill.com have requested a trace to see where it is and have asked me to provide a cancellation confirmation from my bank. If anyone is able to advise how to go about that, I'd appreciate it.

Trace should find it. For confirmation you would have to ask HSBC, but getting through to someone who will give that could be fun.
One of the problems with international payments are that they are not direct between banks. They can go through various intermediaries.

Ballard

brianposter said:

Ballard said:

It makes perfect sense not to tell someone who you suspect may be a money launderer that you think that they may a money launderer. 

You think money launderers are really dumb and dont wonder why their accounts have been suspended ?

In some cases yes. Money laundering could have been going on for many months undetected. Those perpetrating it can get complacent because they haven’t been caught as yet and think that it’s the bank messing up.

Do you think that it’s best that the bank just tell people up front that they suspect that they’re criminals then?