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Company Information

  Company Name HSBC Holdings plc
  Company Type Public (, , , , )
  Foundation Hong Kong (1865)
  Founder Thomas Sutherland
  Location City London
  Location Country England , UK
  Key People Stephen Green , Chairman <br /> Michael Geoghegan , CEO
  Industry Finance And Insurance
  Products Financial Services
  Revenue $701 billion USD ( 2006 ) {Link without Title}
  Operating Income $548 billion USD ( 2006 )
  Net Income $158 billion USD ( 2006 )
  Num Employees 312,000
  Subsid HSBC Bank Plc , The Hongkong And Shanghai Banking Corporation , HSBC Bank USA , HSBC Mexico , HSBC Bank Brasil , HSBC Finance
  Slogan The world's local bank
  Homepage wwwhsbccom


HSBC Holdings plc (, , , , ) is one of the largest Bank ing groups in the World , ranked the third-largest Company in the world in Forbes Global 2000 . Its head office is located in the HSBC Tower (8 Canada Square) by London 's Canary Wharf . The group is named after its founding member, '''The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation''', a bank established in Hong Kong by Thomas Sutherland , a Scot , to finance British trade in the Far East in 1865. Today the corporation is simply 'HSBC'.

The bank is the fourth largest s, since 80% of its earnings originate from outside the United Kingdom . Nearly 22% of its earnings are from operations in Hong Kong , where it was headquartered until 1991. It is the largest bank in Hong Kong, and at the end of 2005 was the largest banking group in the world by Tier 1 Capital .http://www.economist.com/markets/indicators/displaystory.cfm?story_id=7141354

The HSBC logo, known as the Hexagon , is derived from ''The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation’s'' 19th century house flag, itself derived from the Scottish Flag , which is the angular cross that Saint Andrew (the patron saint of Scotland) was crucified upon.


LOCAL OPERATIONS

The HSBC Group operates as a number of local banks around the world. Outlined below are operations in .


Americas

  • HSBC Bank Argentina SA has around 150 branches throughout Argentina providing a full range of banking and financial products and services to over 1.2 million customers. Midland Bank purchased a stake in Banco Roberts SA in 1987; in 1997 HSBC took full control of the bank and rebranded it HSBC.


  • The Bank Of Bermuda Limited was acquired by HSBC in February 2004. Founded in 1889, it is a leading provider of fund administration, trust, custody, asset management and banking services, since the acquisition the group has focused its global efforts in some areas of these services on the island.



  • HSBC Bank Brasil is HSBC’s largest presence in South America . It was established in March 1997 with the acquisition of the assets, liabilities and subsidiaries of Banco Bamerindus do Brasil SA, which was established in 1952. HSBC is now among the ten largest banks in Brazil, with more than 1,700 branches and sub-branches in 550 Brazilian cities.



  • HSBC Mexico, SA is one of Mexico’s four largest banking and financial service companies, with 1,400 branches, 4,800 ATMs and 6 million customers. HSBC purchased Banco Internacional, SA known as Bital, in November 2002, rebranding it overnight in January 2004.




Asia Pacific

  • HSBC Bank Australia Limited gained its banking licence in 1986. Today, a full range of Personal and Commercial services are offered from a network of branches as well as via direct channels.






  • The Hongkong And Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited HSBC opened its first Indonesian office in Jakarta in 1884 as The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited. Having been able to restart its operations after the Second World War , it was again forced to close in mid-1960s, however the Bank was granted a new banking licence in 1968 its operations have grown to make it one of the largest foreign banks operating in Indonesia.


  • HSBC Bank Malaysia Berhad traces its history back to the opening of the first HSBC office in Penang in 1884. The bank later became an issuer of currency notes for the Malaysian government. A gradual expansion programme resulted in the bank’s incorporation, the first foreign institution to do so in Malaysia in 1994. The bank today provides a full range of personal and commercial financial services.HSBC operates a call center in Cyberjaya , Malaysia , a cybercity in Malaysia.


  • HSBC Bank Singapore operates as a full service bank with its headquarters in Collyer Quay , it is an approved Primary Dealer in the Singapore Government Securities Market and an Approved Bond Intermediary, with over a hundred staff operating one of the largest integrated dealing rooms in Singapore .






Europe



will join on 2 January 2008.

  • HSBC SA operates around 800 branches in France since the takeover of Credit Commercial De France , primarily operating under the HSBC brand. HSBC France is now the HSBC Group’s lead bank in the Eurozone , focusing on certain capital market products for a global audience, and high net worth and international business in France.


  • HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt AG was founded in 1785 and is one of the longest-established members of the HSBC Group. It has operations in private, commercial and investment banking and asset management.



  • HSBC Bank Malta Plc is one of the largest banks in Malta . It is a listed company but its majority shareholder is the HSBC Group. Formerly the Mid-Med Bank , HSBC Bank Malta is the second-longest established bank in Malta.


  • HSBC Private Bank (Suisse) SA and HSBC Guyerzeller Bank AG are the Swiss operating subsidiaries of the group's Private Banking business, with 12 locations in the country. Much of the private banking business takes a lead from work done in Switzerland, with a total of 74 locations around the world operating solely for private banking business.


  • HSBC Bank AS is now the fifth largest private bank in Turkey , having expanded through internal financing and via Acquisition since entering the market in 1990. The bank has a network of around 190 branches, offering products and services to corporate, commercial and personal customers, both under the HSBC brand as well as the ''Advantage'' brand.




Middle East and Africa

  • HSBC Bank Egypt SAE was founded in 1982, and rebranded as HSBC in April 2001 after HSBC lifted its ownership stake from 40% to 94.5%. HSBC Bank Egypt is one of the largest Multinationals and fastest growing banks in Egypt , providing a comprehensive range of banking and related financial services through a network of 44 branches.



  • HSBC Bank Middle East Limited HSBC provides a range of banking services for both corporate and individual customers in Qatar . HSBC is the largest foreign bank in Qatar and has five branches, in Doha , Al Sadd, West Bay, Rayyan and Grand Hamad Street as well as a large network of ATMs at 21 different locations.




GLOBAL PRODUCT LINES AND PROGRAMMES


Group Service Centres

As a cost saving measure HSBC is Offshoring processing work to lower cost economies in order to reduce the cost of providing services in developed countries. These locations take on work such as Data Processing and Customer Service , but also internal Software Engineering at Pune, Hyderabad (India), Guangzhou (China) and Curitiba (Brazil).

Chief Operating Officer Alan Jebson said in March 2005 that he would be very surprised if fewer than 25,000 people were working in the centres over the next three years: “I don’t have a precise target but I would be surprised if we had less than 15 (global service centres) in three years’ time.” He went on to say that each centre cost the bank from $20m to $30m to set up, but that for every job moved the bank saves about $20,000 (£10,400).http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4353423.stm

Trade Union s, particularly in the US and UK, blame these centres for job losses in developed countries, and also for the effective imposition of wage caps on their members.

Currently centres exist in six countries, in Brazil in Curitiba , in India in Hyderabad , Bangalore , Visakhapatnam , Mumbai , Kolkata and Pune , in China in Shanghai , Guangzhou and Shenzhen , in Kuala Lumpur ( Malaysia ), Colombo ( Kotte ) ( Sri Lanka ) and Manila ( Philippines ). There is also a trial going on in Malta to asses the possibility of offshoring a UK high value call centre. An option under consideration is reported to be a processing centre in Vietnam to access the French skills of the population and therefore cut costs in the bank’s French operation.

On June 27th 2006, HSBC reported that a "small number" of customers had suffered from fraud totalling £233,000 after an employee at the Bangalore call centre supplied confidential customer information to fraudsters.http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5122886.stm


HSBC Premier

The group has HSBC Premier as its premium financial services product - the brand name has been used in many market places around the world. Traditionally the exact benefits and qualification criteria have varied depending on what country you were in. Broadly customers had a dedicated Relationship Manager , global 24 hour access to Premier call centres, and preferential rates.

In May 2007, HSBC relaunched its HSBC Premier service simultaneously across 35 countries and territories and standardised its various offerings to include:


  • Internationally-portable HSBC credit history

  • International account opening before leaving home

  • Dedicated global personal relationship manager

  • Pre-approved mortgages for overseas property

  • A single-view of all accounts in any location online

  • Free global me-to-me money transfer between HSBC accounts

  • Emergency help including cash at over 245,000 outlets across 200 countries

  • Single global 24-hour helpline for customers and their families

  • Banking services and lounge facilities across 35 countries and territories and

  • Access to international wealth management products and professional investment information



Countries included in the global roll-out of HSBC Premier are: Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Bermuda, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, China, Colombia, Egypt, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Jersey, Jordan, Lebanon, Macao, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, UAE, UK and USA.


HSBC Bank International

HSBC Bank International Limited (http://offshore.hsbc.com/1/2/home) is the Offshore Bank ing arm of the HSBC Group, it focuses on providing offshore solutions and cross border services to Expatriate s and Migrants . It provides a full range of multi-currency personal banking services to a range of customer segments, including a full internet banking and telephone banking service. Sometimes referred to as 'HSBC Offshore', the business also offers independent financial planning, and has representative offices all over the world, often working alongside local HSBC operations in those regions.

HSBC Bank International originated from the business started by Midland Bank and is based in the Channel Islands with further operations on the Isle Of Man . Its operations in the Channel Islands are centred around its registered headquarters on the seafront in St Helier , Jersey . Named 'HSBC House', the building comprises departments such as Premier, Global Funds & Investments, e-Business and a 24 hour 'Direct Banking Centre'.


HSBCnet

Corporate, Investment Banking and Markets (CIBM) has HSBCnet (http://www.hsbcnet.com) as its online brand presence, having originated as the name for the new corporate internet banking system.

HSBCnet is a global service that caters to local business needs by offering specialised functionality for different regions world-wide.

The system provides access to transaction banking functionality - ranging from payments and cash management to trade services features - as well as to research and analytics content from HSBC. It also includes foreign exchange and money markets trading functionality.

The system is used widely by HSBC's high-end corporate and institutional clients served variously by the bank's CIBM, Commercial Banking (CMB) and Global Transaction Banking (GTB) divisions.


HSBC Direct

HSBC Direct is an online direct banking operation which attracts customers through their high-interest savings accounts and no service charges or minimum account balance requirements.

It was first launched in the USA (November 2005) and is currently also available in ''' Canada ''' (April 2007), ''' Taiwan ''' (September 2006) and ''' South Korea ''' (February 2007).

HSBC have announced plans to launch HSBC Direct in other countries, as well as gradually expand its product range to include other products.


BRAND AND ADVERTISING


The group announced in November 1998 that the HSBC brand and the hexagon symbol would be adopted as the unified brand in all the markets where HSBC operates, with the aim of enhancing recognition of the Group and its values by customers, shareholders and staff throughout the world.


Hexagon symbol

This was originally adopted by The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation as its logo in 1983. It was developed from the bank’s house Flag , a white rectangle divided diagonally to produce a red Hourglass shape. Like many other Hong Kong company flags that originated in the 19th century, the design was based on the cross of Saint Andrew. The logo was designed by Graphics master Henry Steiner .
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Sponsorship

Having sponsored the Jaguar Racing Formula One team since the days of Stewart Grand Prix , HSBC ended its relationship with the sport when Red Bull purchased Jaguar Racing from Ford . HSBC has now switched its focus to golf, taking title sponsorship of events such as the HSBC World Match Play Championship , HSBC Women’s World Match Play Championship and HSBC Champions .

In football HSBC sponsors French club AS Monaco and Mexican club CF Pachuca .

In Rugby League HSBC sponsors Telford Raiders in the Rugby League Conference .

In Australia, HSBC sponsors the New South Wales Waratahs rugby team in the Super 14 competition, as well as the Hawthorn Football Club in the Australian Football League .

In the United States, HSBC owns the naming rights to the home arena of the Buffalo Sabres until 2026, the team plays in the North American National Hockey League .

HSBC’s other sponsorships are mainly in the area of education, health and the environment. They have an educational foundation and have recently (Nov 2006) announced a $5m partnership with SOS Children as part of Future First.http://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/sos-childrens-charity/our-partners/hsbc-sos-partnership.htm

HSBC's name and logo adorns many airport Airbridges in the UK, particularly at London Heathrow and Gatwick airports. This advertising is also in place on airbridges at John F. Kennedy Airport and LaGuardia Airport in New York, Narita International Airport in Tokyo, and Pudong Airport in Shanghai.

Every year, HSBC sponsors the Great Canadian Geography Challenge, which have roughly two million participants in the past twelve years.

Since 2001, HSBC sponsors the Celebration Of Light , an annual musical fireworks competition in Vancouver , British Columbia , Canada .


Slogan

Since the global adoption of the HSBC brand the following strap lines have been used:
  • 1999-2002: Your world of financial services

  • 2002-present: The world’s local bank



CORPORATE GOVERNANCE


Executive Pay

As of 2005 Michael Geoghegan , the company's CEO, was earning over £700,000.00 (over 1 million US dollars) per year, and the chairman Sir John Bond , who retired in 2006, was earning 1.8 million US dollars. HSBC made record profits in the 2004-2005 year earning over 12 billion GB Pounds or more than 20 billion US dollars.


Household Acquisition

In model to Brazil, India and elsewhere.


CUSTOMER GROUPS

HSBC splits its business into four distinct groups, on a global basis:


Personal Financial Services

HSBC provides more than 100 million customers world-wide with a full range of personal financial services, including Current and Savings Account s, Mortgage Loan s, car financing, Insurance , Credit Card s, Loan s, Pension s and Investments . The Consumer Finance group facilitates Point Of Sale credit to consumers, and lends money and provides related services to meet the financial needs of everyday people.


Commercial Banking

HSBC provides financial services to small, medium-sized and middle-market enterprises. The group has almost 2.5 million of such customers, including Sole Proprietors , Partnership s, Club s and Associations , Incorporated Businesses and Publicly Quoted Companies .


Corporate, Investment Banking and Markets

This customer group provides tailored financial services to Corporate and Institutional Client s. Business lines comprise Global Banking, Global Markets, Global Research and Global Transaction Banking.


Private Banking

Private Banking provides financial services to high net worth individuals and their families in 68 cities. Over the last five years, acquired companies such as Republic New York Corporation , Safra Republic Holdings , The Bank Of Bermuda and Wealth And Tax Advisory Services have been integrated into HSBC’s private banking business.


STRATEGY


Managing for Value 1998-2003

''Managing for Value'' was the strategy followed by the group between 1998 and 2003.


Managing for Growth 2003-2008

HSBC launched ''Managing for Growth'' at the end of 2003. This is a strategic plan that provides a blueprint for growth and development. HSBC aims to be the world’s leading financial services company, defined as being preferred, admired, dynamic, and recognised for giving customers a fair deal.
  • Brand: to make HSBC and its hexagon symbol one of the world’s leading brands for customer experience and corporate social responsibility;

  • Personal Financial Services: drive growth in key markets and through appropriate channels to make HSBC the strongest global player in personal financial services;

  • Consumer Finance: extend the reach of this business to existing customers through a wider product range, and penetrate new markets;

  • Commercial Banking: utilise HSBC’s international customer base through effective relationship management and improved product offerings in all the Group’s markets;

  • Corporate, Investment Banking and Markets: accelerate growth by enhancing capital markets and advisory capabilities focused on client service in defined sectors where HSBC has critical relevance and strength;

  • Private Banking: serve the Group’s highest value personal clients around the world;

  • People: attract, develop and motivate HSBC’s staff, rewarding success and rejecting mediocrity; and

  • TSR : fulfil HSBC’s TSR target by achieving strong competitive performances in earnings per share growth and efficiency. HSBCnet



HISTORY OF HSBC HOLDINGS PLC

(with the round dome, currently houses the Shanghai Pudong Development Bank).]]

For the history of the HSBC Group prior to the founding of HSBC Holdings plc in 1991, see The Hongkong And Shanghai Banking Corporation .



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