HSBC plans to claw back bonuses from executives, past and present, after an investigation by the US authorities revealed the bank had laundered cash for criminal organisations.

The employer could recover millions of pounds in bonus awards from employees, reportedly including former chief executive Michael Geoghegan and Sandy Flockhart, a senior executive at the bank’s Mexican operation.

HSBC faces $700million (£444m) in fines after US authorities exposed lax controls, which were supposed to prevent illegal money being moved through the bank’s coffers.

The report from the US Senate highlighted a “pervasively polluted" culture at bank’s American operation that meant money laundering was allowed to take place for several years.

Douglas Flint, HSBC’s chairman, said: “We will be going through it [the US report] in some detail and looking at personal responsibility to determine whether [bonus clawback] is appropriate. It could potentially include anyone who has deferred compensation.”

The firm’s remuneration committee will decide which individuals should pay back money and how much.

Geoghegan, who ran the bank from 2006 to 2010, and Flockhart, who led the Mexican business from 2002 to 2007, have nearly £7 million in combined bonus shares that could be claimed through clawback rules introduced by HSBC in 2010.

Stuart Gulliver, the new HSBC chief executive who took charge in 2011, suggested that the total fine imposed by US authorities could be "higher, possibly significantly higher" and said the bank would undergo a restructure to stop it happening again.

"I very much regret HSBC's past failures and very much apologise for them. What happened in Mexico and the US is shameful, it's embarrassing, it's very painful for all of us in the firm," Gulliver said.