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By Steve Slater
LONDON, Feb 13 (Reuters) - The boss of HSBC saidthe bank had sometimes failed to live up to the standardsexpected of it, in his first response to allegations of helpinghundreds of people dodge taxes.
HSBC this week admitted failings in compliance and controlsin its Swiss private bank after media allegations it may haveenabled clients to avoid paying tax, but Chief Executive StuartGulliver said many people alleged to have been clients had longsince left and some never were clients.
The disclosures have sparked a political row in Britain overpractices at HSBC, Europe's biggest bank, and whether taxauthorities had done enough to pursue possible wrongdoers.
Gulliver said in a memo to staff seen by Reuters he had beencalled to give evidence to lawmakers over the allegations. HSBCChairman Douglas Flint has already been called to answerquestions about the issue on Feb. 25.
"I share your frustration that the media focus on historicalevents makes it harder for people to see the efforts we havemade to put things right," Gulliver said in the memo.
"But we must acknowledge we sometimes failed to live up tothe standards the societies we serve rightly expected from us."
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists(ICIJ), which coordinated the release of details of leaked dataabout HSBC clients up to 2007, said the list of people who heldaccounts with the Swiss arm included royalty, sports and rockstars, Hollywood actors, politicians and arms dealers.
Having a Swiss bank account is not illegal and many are heldfor legitimate purposes.
The Guardian newspaper said on Friday HSBC had providedaccounts for clients implicated in African corruption scandals,blood diamond trading and others alleged to have been involvedin bribery and cocaine smuggling.
Gulliver said of about 140 names mentioned in media reports,106 were no longer clients. Several left the bank before thedata was taken. And a number of other named individuals hadnever been clients.
Gulliver said HSBC's Swiss bank had been completelyoverhauled since 2008 and HSBC was now run with far greatercentral control and with more than 7,000 compliance staff,double the number in 2011.
Gulliver said he and Flint welcomed the opportunity toexplain the changes to Britain's Treasury Committee.
One of the lawmakers on the Parliamentary panel said onFriday it could also quiz former HSBC Chairman Stephen Green,who held the post from 2006 to 2010 and was UK trade ministerfrom 2011 until 2013. (Editing by Alexander Smith and David Holmes)