China technology company Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. is taking HSBC Holdings plc to court as part of its efforts to prevent chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou's extradition to the U.S.
Huawei is seeking access to HSBC documents in a London court hearing Friday.
Meng's lawyers submitted an application to the high court under the Bankers Book Evidence Act to access information that could support her lawyers' previous claims about the U.S. allegedly omitting crucial data in its filing against Meng.
The allegedly omitted information could determine if Meng was clear about Huawei's relationship with Skycom Corp. to HSBC executives.
A representative for HSBC said the disclosure application "is without merit." The representative said the bank was "not a party to the underlying criminal case in the U.S. or the extradition proceeding in Canada."
The developments have placed HSBC under pressure from four different political circles: the U.S., the UK, Canada and China. However, the bank maintains it has submitted all data required by law.
In December 2018, Meng was arrested at an airport in Vancouver. The U.S. has since sought Meng's extradition to the U.S. under charges that it violated American sanctions on Iran.
The U.S. alleged Meng - who is the daughter of Huawei chief executive and founder Ren Zhengfei - misled HSBC senior executives during a presentation in August 2013 regarding telecoms equipment company Skycom.
The question is whether there was a breach in U.S. trade sanctions on Iran by Skycom. At the 2013 meeting, Meng is alleged to have misled HSBC regarding its relationship with Skycom.
If the court allows Huawei access to HSBC documents, it is expected evidence will show what the bank knows and doesn't know about Skycom and Huawei's relationship.
Meng has denied the U.S. allegations. She is set to appear March 1 in a Vancouver court for what could be the last stage of her extradition hearing.
Two weeks ago, Meng's lawyers requested that private security guards be removed while she travels around Vancouver. A judge refused.
Meng's lawyers said guards who traveled with Meng put her at greater risk of contracting COVID-19. However, Justice William Ehrcke of the Supreme Court of British Columbia ordered the 24-hour watch of Meng maintained.
Ehrcke said security for Meng at her Vancouver mansion and elsewhere was "the minimum" to ensure she doesn't abscond because she is considered a flight risk as a result of the "significant financial resources" at her disposal.
Meng is required to observe an 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew and is also required to wear a tracker.
