Paul Moore, the HBOS whistleblower, has presented new evidence to the Treasury Select Committee supporting his claims that the reckless sales-culture and product mis-selling ultimately led to the bank's collapse.

The 'driven' sales culture at HBOS had a serious impact on the potential for mis-selling products, such as corporate bond funds and credit insurance, to customers who neither understood the risk involved nor, in many cases, needed the product, Moore said yesterday.

His new evidence opens the door to legal action by former shareholders of HBOS – now part of Lloyds – against HBOS executives and directors for breach of fiduciary duty and "fit and proper" FSA regulations.

'In simple terms this crisis was caused, not because many bright people did not see it coming, but because there has been a completely inadequate balance of powers between the executive and all those accountable for overseeing their actions and reining it in,' Moore said.

Independent of Sunday