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Hillary Clinton is under pressure to adopt a more populist image. Photo: AFP

Washington: Hillary Clinton, the presumed frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination, will give a pair of speeches on Wednesday in Canada hosted by a major bank that has been the subject of several investigations into wrongdoing over the past dozen years.

Ms Clinton and the bank refused to say if she's being paid for the speeches. But the appearances are all but certain to fuel complaints that she's too close to the corporate elites, especially coming a day after President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech focusing on the plight of the middle class and signs that several top Republicans also plan to make economic populism a centrepiece of their campaigns.

Ms Clinton has given dozens of speeches since leaving office as secretary of state, many for free and many drawing paychecks of as much as US$200,000 to US$300,000. The Wednesday addresses could stand out, as they'll be hosted by a foreign bank with a record of investigations by US officials.

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In 2003, the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce settled a case with the Securities and Exchange Commission for $US80 million for allegedly helping the Enron energy company mislead investors through a series of transactions over a period of several years, according to the SEC. At least two executives agreed to settle charges of aiding and abetting the fraud, paying a total of $US600,000.

In 2005, CIBC settled another case with SEC for $US125 million after it was accused of financing late trading to increase their customers' trading profits at the expense of long-term mutual fund shareholders, according to the SEC.

And again in 2005, the bank agreed to pay nearly a half million dollars to settle SEC allegations that it broke the law by underwriting municipal securities for the state of California after making campaign donations to six politicians, including former Democratic Governor Gray Davis, according to the SEC. Securities law forbids a corporate donor from doing municipal securities work for an issuer within two years of a contribution.

More recently, it was hit with a series of class action lawsuits seeking $US4 billion over allegations that it did not adequately warn investors of its exposure to the US subprime market. In each case, even the ones in which CIBC settled, it denied any wrongdoing.

Clinton will speak in Winnipeg and Saskatoon as part of the Global Perspective speakers series sponsored by the Toronto-based bank with millions of clients and tens of thousands of employees. Tickets are being sold for the events that will be held in large arenas, at the RBC Winnipeg Convention Centre and the TCU Place.

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Hillary Clinton talks to be hosted by bank often investigated for wrongdoing