Barclays and Standard Chartered launch Fifa investigation

Two UK banks have started internal reviews into whether they were used for corrupt payments by Fifa officials, the BBC understands.

The FBI referred to Standard Chartered and Barclays – and HSBC – on Wednesday in the indictment of 14 people but did not accuse them of any wrongdoing.

Seven of the 14 were Fifa officials, who were arrested in Switzerland.

Barclays and HSBC have declined to comment while Standard Chartered said it was looking into those payments.

The arrests came in the run-up to Friday’s Fifa leadership election, in which Sepp Blatter was re-elected as president for a fifth term.

Analysis

By BBC business correspondent Joe Lynam

Dozens of banks were named in the 164-page FBI indictment of seven Fifa officials last week.

Some are tiny banks that most of us had not heard of – but three large UK banks were also there.

They weren’t accused of anything – merely cited by the FBI as evidence of payments made by “co-conspirators” and the banks they used to funnel illicit wire transfers.

Nonetheless Barclays, Standard Chartered and HSBC will be actively looking at all payments through their global networks which might be tied to the accused officials and Fifa in general.

HSBC and Standard Chartered will be especially nervous. They’ve already paid fines in the past three years of almost £1.3bn ($2bn) and £650m ($1bn) respectively to US regulators for permitting money laundering or for flouting US sanctions.

Barclays might also be anxious because the roll-call of huge fines paid to domestic and international watchdogs seems to get longer every month.

Meanwhile Labour’s shadow health secretary Andy Burnham has called on England to boycott the next World Cup in 1918.

The former sports minister told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Pienaar’s Politics there was a “pretty overwhelming case” for the Football Association to act.

He said he had long had doubts about Russia hosting the event.

However, FA chairman Greg Dyke said it cannot act alone.

He told BBC One’s the Andrew Marr Show: “It’s got to be done by enough nations to have an impact, if it’s done.

“It would be ridiculous to try to do it on your own because all we’d do is pull out of the World Cup and everyone would say ‘well done’ and they’d forget all about us.

“We’ve got to do it alongside other large footballing nations.”

Mr Dyke added that FA president the Duke of Cambridge was also unhappy with the recent events concerning Fifa.

“I was talking to him about it at the FA Cup final on Saturday. He is obviously upset by what’s happened and he feels quite strongly about it,” Mr Dyke said.

Mr Burnham said: “I think the FA should be a bit stronger personally and should say what many people feel, that it’s just not acceptable, particularly when you look at the alleged corruption within Fifa and then the situation between Russia and Ukraine.

“It would be very difficult but sometimes you’ve got to take a stand and you’ve got to say whether it’s right or wrong.

“And I can’t see how it feels right to me to send an England team to Russia to play in a World Cup as if nothing has happened. Qatar too – but that’s an issue that’s further down the line.

“If enough people take that stand and follow our lead, then we will see new arrangements for the 2018 World Cup which I believe is what we need.”

Meanwhile Mr Blatter has said the organisation can move on from its current crisis, following his election win.

“It’s no longer a storm, it’s less strong at the moment,” he said. “I will continue to struggle and fight for good things.”

BBC