Mega-rich HSBC banker banned from the City for almost £6,000 thousands in train fares

Mega-rich HSBC banker banned from the City for almost £6,000 thousands in train fares Joseph Molloy, 53, saved almost £6,000 over a number of years by buying tickets covering only the beginning and end of his journeys from his home in south London to Canary Wharf A successful banker has been banned from the City after dodging almost £6,000 in train fares on the commute from his plush £2million mansion. Wealthy Joseph Molloy, 53, pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation after using a tactic known as "doughnutting" between the station near his property in Orpington, southeast London, and HSBC's HQ in Canary Wharf. His money-saving scam involved buying tickets for the start and end of a journey, but leaving out the stations in between. But his career is over after attempting to save a few pounds daily. The former head of passive equity at HSBC Asset Management would use fake names and email addresses to purchase tickets. Molloy was sentenced to 10 months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, at Inner London Crown Court on February 17. He was also banned from travelling on Southeastern trains for a year and forced to pay the rail company £5900 in compensation. The Financial Conduct Authority said it had banned now-retied Molloy from working in any regulated financial services role due to his conviction. In its ruling, the watchdog states: "Mr Molloy’s conviction demonstrates a clear and serious lack of honesty and integrity such that he is not fit and proper to perform regulated activities" Molloy used two separate accounts with Southeastern under false names, addresses and email accounts to buy travel cards. He did so at for at least 740 journeys, dodging £5,911 in total between October 2023 and September 2024. The banker had initially declined to comment when he was interviewed about the fraud, but he confessed in full after the police showed him the evidence against him, the court heard. Mirror has approached HSBC for comment. Molloy was appointed head of passive equity at HSBC Global Asset Management in 2015 before retiring last year. This is an investment strategy in which funds automatically track a stock market index, rather than paying a manager to pick stocks. The judge described his offending as a "sophisticated and determined fraud". The court heard he was "clearly in a financial position to pay the fares" but decided to evade them, causing a "loss to the whole of society". Molloy, the court also heard, was experiencing "difficult" personal circumstances at the time, had shown genuine remorse and stopped offending of his own volition. The FCA said Molloy had accepted he fell below the standards expected from the financial watchdog. It noted: "Mr Molloy has informed the Authority that he accepts that he fell below the standards of behaviour expected by the Authority". The Express understands Molloy has not lodged an appeal. The court heard the church-goer had been suffering from stress and grief at the loss of his mother. Will Hanson, representing Molloy, said in court: "He was going through a pretty difficult period when he did this. He cannot explain why he did this. "It is a fraud that was discreet in nature, committed against no individual and no one from the public was made to suffer and a large private company was the victim."