HSBC Continental Europe (CLONE) – Central Bank of Ireland Issues Warning on Unauthorised Firm

What Changed

• - The CBI has formally designated “HSBC Continental Europe (CLONE)” as an unauthorised banker / unauthorised firm and added it to its public unauthorised firms list.
• The CBI has identified and published the specific contact details associated with the scam entity, including the website `https://campaign.eligibility-advisorscorporate.com/`, Irish phone numbers (01) 6214 2195 and (07) 4313 0963, and the email addre
• The publication confirms that the fraudulent entity has cloned both the name and details of HSBC Continental Europe and separately cloned the authorisation number CBI00001421, which belongs legitimately to Cowan Insurance Brokers Limited.
• The CBI expressly states there is no connection between Cowan Insurance Brokers Limited and the fraudulent entity, thereby clarifying that any use of that authorisation number in combination with the above contact details is indicative of fraud.
• The warning reiterates that any unauthorised provision of financial services that requires CBI authorisation is a criminal offence, reinforcing the enforcement stance seen across prior clone‑HSBC warnings issued since November 2023.
• The CBI reminds market participants and consumers that suspected unauthorised firms must be reported directly to the Central Bank, either via telephone or via its online reporting channel for unauthorised activity.

Suggested Considerations

• Update internal sanctions / fraud / negative‑news / watchlists to include “HSBC Continental Europe (CLONE)” together with the published website, phone numbers, and email address, and ensure these are blocked or escalated on detection.
• Implement or reinforce procedures to independently verify CBI authorisation numbers and firm details directly against the CBI registers, and ensure staff understand that cloned use of an otherwise valid authorisation number is a red‑flag indicator of fraud.
• Conduct an immediate targeted review of recent and pending client interactions, payments, and investment instructions to identify any exposure to the scam entity or its contact details, and escalate any hits to financial crime and legal teams.
• Deliver targeted staff training and reminders (particularly for front‑office, call‑centre, onboarding, and complaints teams) on clone‑firm typologies, including the use of legitimate authorisation numbers (e.g., CBI00001421) by fraudulent entities.
• Enhance customer‑facing communications, website warnings, and FAQs to highlight current CBI warnings about HSBC‑branded clones and to instruct customers always to verify firm details via the official CBI registers and not via links sent in emails or on unknown websites.
• Align internal fraud‑reporting and whistleblowing procedures so that suspected interactions with “HSBC Continental Europe (CLONE)” or similar clones are promptly reported to the CBI through its unauthorised‑firm reporting channels and recorded in internal incident logs.

Key Dates

Who is Affected