PARIS/LONDON, April 23 (Reuters) - France has opened a probe into whether British bank HSBC (LSE: HSBA.L - news) offered illicit products to help French clients avoid tax in Switzerland, the prosecutor's office said on Tuesday.
The investigation is based on a list of French clients at HSBC's Swiss unit obtained in 2009, the prosecutor's office said.
A spokeswoman for HSBC declined to comment.
