THE head of compliance at HSBC resigned in front of a US Senate sub-committee after it emerged the bank had exposed the US to billions of dollars worth of money laundering, drug trafficking and terrorist financing.

David Bagley, HSBC head of group compliance since 2002, stepped down before the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee after its findings were published.

Mr Bagley, who had a 20-year career with the bank and is based in London, said the bank had “fallen short of our own expectations and the expectations of our regulators”.