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The head of compliance at a British foreign exchange intermediary was instructed by his employer to obtain a visa for a suspected Chinese spy, according to allegations set out in an employment tribunal judgment.
The British subsidiary of Goldenway Global Investments, a Hong Kong-registered group, has committed crimes against individuals found to be “Chinese espionage agents,” according to an accusation by the company’s former compliance chief, Bharat Baghani. I was seeking a work visa.
The allegation that the company sought visas for Chinese spies is the latest in a growing number of espionage cases between Britain and China.
Earlier this month, the Chinese government accused Britain of instructing the head of a foreign consulting firm to spy on China and recruit British intelligence personnel.
Last year, Britain arrested a House of Commons researcher on suspicion of spying for China. Chancellor Rishi Sunak said he was “appalled” by the incident, which sparked a tense standoff between Mr Sunak and Chinese Premier Li Qiang on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Delhi.
Meanwhile, Conservative supporters are increasingly calling for the government to take a more hawkish stance on China.
Mr Bagani filed a complaint against Goldenway Global Investments UK in September after alerting the Financial Conduct Authority that the company’s directors were not registered with the FCA and making a series of complaints, including allegations of money laundering. brought a claim for unfair dismissal. The FCA has not commented on this claim.
According to a London court ruling released last month, first reported by Bloomberg, Bagani was asked to assist a chief operating officer in “applying for a visa for a Chinese agent.”
The former employee, whose unfair dismissal claim was successful, told the court that while being questioned by British authorities about the case, he learned that the Chinese agent had been deported from the UK.
Although Goldenway rejected some of Bagani’s claims, documents released by the court said Bagani’s evidence regarding the spy agent was not “seriously challenged” by Goldenway or its witnesses.
In the absence of evidence to the contrary, and because Mr. Bagani’s knowledge of deportation came from his interactions with the British authorities, the court held that “the claimant did not intend to hire a foreign national at the time of the disclosure to the FCA.” “He had a reasonable belief that he had done so,” the court ruled. Chinese intelligence.”
Goldenway did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Bagani could not be reached.
The Chinese embassy in London had no immediate comment.